Love Remains The Same
by JillMH
Summary: Co authored by hopelessromantic09. Edward and Bella both came out of bad relationships. What happens when they meet on a 7 day Caribbean cruise? AH,Canon couples, slightly OOC, rated M for language and possible lemon.
1. Break Up Shake Ups

**Disclaimer: We do not own anything but the story line. The wonderful Stephenie Meyer owns everything.**

**Hey everyone. This is our first story and we hope you like it. Enjoy!**

Chapter 1: Breakup Shakeups

**BPOV**

It's over. After tonight, I will no longer be in high school. This fall, I will be attending the University of Washington without any regrets. After breaking up with my boyfriend, Jacob, because I refused to have sex with him, I no longer felt the need to keep myself in the little town of Forks, Washington.

Sitting in the school gymnasium with my fellow classmates, listening to the Star Spangled Banner play, I realized that this will be my last memory of high school. After the names were called to receive our diplomas, the Valedictorian and Salutatorian messages were given by Angela Weber and Makaila Campbell, respectively. There was only one tradition left that mattered: the tassel moving ceremony.

After tassels were moved and caps were thrown in the air, a loud applause roared through the gymnasium, marking the end of this chapter in our lives. As I stood up to congratulate my best friend, Angela, I heard my dad yell, "Bells!" in an effort to get my attention. I quickly hugged Angela and went over to my parents.

"Congratulations, Baby!" my mom said, hugging me. She had tears of joy in her eyes.

"Way to go, Bells! I knew you could do it," my dad congratulated.

After saying bye to Angela, my parents and I walked to the car ready to begin my last summer in Forks. Last weekend, my parents had told me that we were going to spend ten days in sunny Miami, Florida. When we got home, I went upstairs to pack the clothes my mom and I had bought specifically for this trip. I went to bed early knowing that I had to be up at 3 am for our 5 am flight out of Port Angeles.

I woke up to that annoying sound that my alarm makes to get me out of my comfortable bed. I groaned as I looked over and saw that it was, in fact, 3 a.m. and Charlie and Renee wanted to be out of the house by 4 a.m.

Once we were at the Port Angeles airport, it was already 5 a.m. We had a flight to catch at 7 a.m. that would take us to Seattle. After checking in our bags and making it through the long security lines, all we had to do was wait. At 6:30 a.m., people started boarding the plane and, pretty soon, we were ready for take off. Once our plane landed in Seattle, we went over towards the departure gate for our 9 a.m. connection flight to Atlanta.

After sitting for a while, waiting for our plane to start boarding, I got up to use the restroom and on my way back to my parents I heard my name.

"Hey bells."

I turned around, a knee-jerk reaction, only to find that it was just a little girl looking at what the gift shop had to offer. I kept walking as I turned to look for who had called me, not even realizing somebody was in front of me until I walked into them.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" He snapped at me.

I was taken aback by the sudden hostility. "I'm sorry; I wasn't watching where I was going." I stammered.

"Obviously," he said, pushing through the crowd.

"Jerk," was all I could mutter as I watched him storm away.

I felt the tears start to sting my eyes as I decided to head back to the bathroom to calm down. As I splashed the cold water in my face, all I could think about was that that guy had no right to treat me with such hostility. It's not like I had planned on running into him.

I walked meekly back to my parents, keeping my head up the whole way.

As boarding started, they called first class. That was when I saw him standing in line to board the first class cabin. _Of course_, I thought to myself. Looking away in a huff, I could feel my anger starting to flare up again. All I could think was, _I'm glad he's staying in Atlanta while I am on my way to a much needed vacation._

Finally, our zone was called. We boarded the plane, only to find that I would be sitting in front of a single mom with an infant and a toddler. _Great,_ I thought to myself.

Needless to say, I didn't get much sleep on the plane due to a screaming infant that needed to be fed and a toddler who kept kicking my seat. Charlie and Renee were lucky that they were sitting in front of me and didn't have to put up with this.

Since sleep was not an option, I decided to watch the in flight movie, which was _Romeo and Juliet_, only to find it was the version with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. I preferred the 1968 version, so I quickly lost interest. I remembered I had brought a few things in my carry on to keep me occupied in instances like this, one of them being my favorite book, _Wuthering Heights._ I decided to read that in hopes of making the time pass by quickly, seeing as how I always lost track of time while reading.

That was a mistake; I sat staring at the same page for hours. The infant behind me had fallen asleep but I seriously considered asking the toddler if he had a serious case of R.L.S. We finally landed in Atlanta, but only had 15 minutes to catch our connection to Miami.

Charlie had decided to go to the bathroom at the airport because the bathrooms on the plane were constantly occupied. Renée and I waited outside of the restroom closest to our arrival gate. When Charlie didn't come out after ten minutes, Renée and I started to get worried that we weren't going to make our connection in time. There were only five minutes left until our flight departed. We decided to head over to our gate in the hope that Charlie would meet us there.

With two minutes left to spare, we saw Charlie finally walking towards us.

Renée was scatterbrained. "Where were you?! I thought you fell in the toilet or something. We were going to leave witho-"

Charlie kept trying to apologize but couldn't get a word in without Renée interrupting so I decided to intervene. "Mom, don't worry about it. He's here now, let's just get on the plane and get going."

"You're right. I'm sorry, I'm just a little anxious."

During the flight, I didn't want to try reading again, so I decided to do a little thinking. I thought back to the Seattle Airport when I accidentally bumped into that gorgeous guy. _What?! Bella, what are you thinking? _I cannot believe that thought just crossed my mind. I don't even know the guy! Not to mention he treated me like shit.

No matter how hard I tried to convince myself that this guy, whoever he thought he was, was not as gorgeous as I made him out to be, I couldn't stop thinking about him. His eyes were the most shocking shade of green and could put the most flawless emeralds to shame. His bronze hair was styled in utter disarray, making me want to run my fingers through it. His facial features were so strong and chiseled they could give Michelangelo's _David_ a run for his money. _Argh!!! Stop Bella!_

Nothing could change the fact that he was rude and inconsiderate. That's what I kept trying to tell myself but I couldn't help but remember that, as I was apologizing to him, my face flushed and, while listening to his velvet voice, I realized my heartbeat picked up pace.

All these different emotions were making me tired, so I decided to take a nap. It seemed like I had just fallen asleep when I heard the pilot over the intercom telling us to fasten our seatbelts.

After a day full of travelling, we were finally in Miami.

**EPOV **

One more hour until I am a free man. That is what I thought as I drove to my graduation from Nova High School in Seattle, Washington.

The graduation went as expected as all graduations do.

After the ceremony, my sister, Alice, and I were on our way to Tyler Crowley's graduation party. My girlfriend, Tanya, and her friend, Jessica, were going to meet us there. As we drove up to his house, I saw no sign of Tanya's car, so we walked unto the house to begin celebrating my freedom. An hour of loud music and rowdiness had passed and I still had not seen Tanya. I decided to call her but was only greeted by her voicemail. I snuck upstairs to escape some of the noise resonating from the party. I opened one of the doors and was shocked by what I saw: Tanya was straddling the vile Mike Newton. I gasped and slammed the door, but not before Tanya saw me. My blood was boiling as I thought about how Tanya could do that to me.

"Edward, please wait. It's not what you think!"

I turned and snapped at her, "What the hell do you mean it wasn't what I thought it was?"

"He came on to me and-"

"You should have stopped him! How many times are you going to do this to me? If you recall, this isn't the first time you've done this. I have been more that forgiving in the past, but this is the last straw. WE'RE OVER!!!" I turned around, walking back downstairs to look for Alice, ignoring the pleas made by Tanya. I found Alice and drug her outside without a word. We hopped in my Volvo and sped out of there like a bat out of hell.

"Edward, what happened?" Alice asked.

I stayed silent not even comprehending what just happened. As I pulled up the long, winding drive, my phone rang. I looked at the caller I.D. refusing to answer when I saw it read Tanya. I threw the car into park and jumped out. I stormed into the house, slamming the door.

**APOV**

I walked into the house, watching my brother storm up to his room. I had no idea what had just transpired. My mother, Esme, heard the commotion, asking, "What was all that about?"

"I have no idea. One minute I was at Tyler's party, enjoying myself, and the next, Edward is dragging me outside followed by a pleading Tanya."

"Oh my. Do you know what happened between the two of them?"

I just shook my head. I always had a feeling that Tanya and Edward would never work out. Unfortunately, for my brother, he had to find out the hard way.

**EPOV**

How could I be so blind? I had caught Tanya kissing a guy on more than one occasion before but, it was merely that: a kiss. I had been nice enough to forgive her after it happened the last time only after making her promise it would never happen again. Who knows how many other guys there have been that I have no idea about?

As I lay in my bed, the only thing keeping me from going insane was the fact that my parents, Carlisle and Esme, had planned a seven day Caribbean cruise for the entire family as my graduation present.

My sister, Alice, and her longtime boyfriend, Jasper and my brother, Emmett, and his fiancée, Rosalie, would be joining my parents and me on this much anticipated vacation. It was planned that each couple would get their own suite and my parents decided to give me my own suite as a gift.

We arrived at the Seattle- Tacoma airport at 7 a.m. for a flight that was leaving for Atlanta at 9 a.m. We took three cars, because Alice and Rose needed as much trunk space as possible for their luggage. Carlisle, Esme, and I were in the Mercedes, Alice and Jasper in her Porsche, and Emmett and Rosalie in his Jeep.

We made it through security with few problems. Some flirty TSA women tried to slip me their numbers, but I simply ignored them.

I was beginning to get restless just sitting, waiting for our plane to come, so I decided to get up and look for some magazines. As I was walking, I was contemplating everything that had transpired in the past 24 hours. I ended up stuck behind a family with kids who could not be controlled. They stopped in the middle of the walkway, so I was waiting for an opening in the crowds to walk thru. Suddenly, I felt somebody run into me. With all I was going through and my patience wearing thin, I was clearly not in the mood to be run into, even if it was an accident, which I'm sure it was.

I still snapped. "Hey, watch where you're going!" I said as I turned around.

"I'm sorry; I wasn't watching where I was going," she stammered.

"Obviously."

I was fuming; how could somebody not see another person, clearly standing in front of them?!?!? I stormed off, pushing my way through the crowd, earning some not so nice comments in the process.

After a while, first class got called to board the plane, and my family and I stood to stand in line. I could feel how tense with stress my body was. As we walked on, I noticed the stewardess looking at me. As I passed by her, she said "Hello," in a voice that, I'm sure, was meant to be sexy, and batted her eyes at me. I was simply not in the mood to put up with flirtatious actions. I just nodded at her and took my seat.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one to notice the stewardess' failed attempts at flirting because, as Emmett was walking towards his seat, he said "Hey, Edward, what was with that lady's eyes? It looked like she was having a seizure."

"I was beginning to think she was epileptic," Jasper added.

I just shrugged.

After take off, the fasten seatbelt light turned off and I was soon joined by Alice. She was always in a chipper mood and always up for a shopping excursion.

"So…"

"So what?"

"So, are you excited for the trip?" she asked.

"I guess."

"What do you plan on doing with the rare free time I plan on granting you?"

I stayed silent.

"Ok, Edward, look, I know you're upset, but it doesn't do any good to hold in all of your emotions. You need to talk eventually and when you decide to, I'll be here to listen."

I looked at my sister, her eyes pleading with desire to know what happened at the party, and decided I should just tell her now, and get it over with.

"After you ran off, I went upstairs to try and escape some of the noise. I opened up one of the bedroom doors and found Tanya straddling Mike Newton," I said his name with such disdain, "in only her bra and underwear."

"What the hell was she thinking?!?!"

"Alice, keep your voice down. I don't want the whole world to know about my now nonexistent love life."

"No!! I will not keep my voice down after what you just said. How could she do this to you?! You have only ever treated her with love and respect. She has no right to go sneaking around with other guys behind your back and make you feel she regretted everything you ever did for her."

"As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted…." I said jokingly.

"Sorry about that."

"It's fine. Anyway, after I found them, I slammed the door, heading back downstairs. She tried to follow me to talk to me but I was no longer interested in what she had to say. I'd caught her kissing other guys before, but it was always in public and, certainly, not in only her bra and underwear. She tried to tell me that what I had seen was not what it looked like. She said he came onto her, but I highly doubt that since she was always flirting with other guys trying to get their attention. I managed to get downstairs and find you and the rest is history."

Alice stayed silent for a moment before speaking. "So things between the two of you are over for good, aren't they?"

"Yes. And, now that I think about it, I'm glad. I don't know why I put up with her antics for so long. She was always gallivanting around flirting with every guy she encountered. She never appreciated anything I did for her, whether it be taking her out to dinner or, just simply, showing her affection. I, just now, realized that I never loved her."

"Well good because you don't deserve to be walked all over like an entryway rug."

"I know that now."

After telling Alice everything I had been feeling, I felt better, lighter almost, and the rest of the flight passed in silence.

The fasten seatbelt sign turned on and that same stewardess, who's name, I now know, was Victoria, asked if I needed any help with my seatbelt. She started to move her hands towards my lap but I gently pushed her hands away and said, "No thank you, I've got it."

"Fine," she replied coolly.

After landing, we got off the plane in Atlanta and headed towards our connection gate.

We only had fifteen minutes until our next flight departed. As we walked up to the connection gate, first class was being called, so we didn't have to wait to board the plane.

I sat alone, which I was thankful for, and had more time to reassess my life. On the plus side, I am now out of the hellish environment that is high school and I am going on a much needed weeklong vacation to escape. The downside, I found my girlfriend cheating on me. To make matters worse, she completely denied the whole thing.

I've got to stop thinking about Tanya. I racked my brain for any kind of distraction. My mind wandered back to the girl that ran into me in the airport at Seattle. At the time, I didn't notice, but I now realized how beautiful she was. Her eyes were doe-like and endless pools of brown. Her skin was a gorgeous cream color with a slight tinge of red to her cheeks. She had long, luxurious, mahogany hair that framed her face beautifully.

As I came to my revelation, I realized I had no right to treat her like I did and I'm sure she didn't run into me on purpose. I had never been so disrespectful to someone in my life, let alone a woman. I vowed that if I ever ran into her again, which I doubt I would, I would find some way to make it up to her and hope that she would be kind enough to forgive me.

I decided that listening to music would help pass the time, so I pulled out my iPod, put it on shuffle, and started listening.

_Always and forever  
Each moment with you  
Is just like a dream to me  
That somehow came true, yeah_

_**Skip!**_ No way in Hell am I listening to any love songs.

_It's very clear, our love is here to stay  
Not for a year but ever and a day  
The radio and the telephone and the movies that we know  
May just be passing fancies and in time may go_

_**Skip!**_ What is up with all these love songs?

_Unchain my heart, baby let me be  
Cause you don't care, help me, set me free_

Finally, something to mimic my emotions.

_Unchain my heart, baby let me go  
Unchain my heart, cause you don't love me no more  
Every time I call you on the phone  
Some fellow tells me that you're not at home  
Unchain my heart, set me free _

_Unchain my heart, baby let me be  
Unchain my heart, cause you don't care about me  
You got me sewed up like a narrow case  
But you let my love go to waste  
Unchain my heart, set me free_

I'm under your spell, like a man in a trance, oh yeah  
Oh but you know damn well, that I don't stand a chance

Unchain my heart, let me go my way  
Unchain my heart, you were mean that day  
Why lead me through a life of misery  
When you don't care a bag of beans for me  
Unchain my heart, oh please, let me be 

After Unchain My Heart finished, all the songs after that seemed to fit my mood. Before I knew it, the fasten seat belt sign turned on and we began our decent into Miami.

**A/N: We hope you liked the chapter. Reviews are nice but not mandatory. We'll, hopefully update anyway. Thanks!**


	2. Beaches and Almost Kisses

**Disclaimer: We do not own anything. Everything belongs to Stephenie Meyer.**

**A/N: ¡Hola Chicos! Ok, we wanted to mention that, most likely, everything in this story is based off a cruise that we took, including the scenario with Charlie and the bathroom. Our dad really did get lost and we almost did leave him. We thought it was pretty funny, so we put it in there. Every chapter will have a song that is in it, we'll embed the lyrics and keep a playlist going as we write. Also, a huge thank you to the people who put our story on their favorites list, it means a lot to us. Let us know what you guys think of this chapter. **

Chapter 2: Beaches and Almost Kisses

**BPOV**

After we got our baggage, we made our way over to the car rental place. Once we had our car, we made the short drive to the InterContinental Miami Hotel.

We got to the hotel and walked up to the check-in desk.

"Good afternoon! How may I help you?" The reservation clerk seemed really cheery, no doubt the product of too much caffeine.

"Hi, we have a reservation under 'Swan'."

"Of course, one moment, please."

Just watching her was making me exhausted. She was pecking away on the keyboard so fast, I wondered if what she was typing was really making sense.

"Ok, we have you in one standard room with two double beds for one night. Is this correct?"

One night? I thought we were staying for a week. Renée must've had something else planned so I brushed it off.

"Yes, it is."

"Alright, I just need your names and ages of any kids."

"I'm Renée, he's Charlie, and this is Bella and she's 18." My mom said pointing at each of us in turn.

"Alrighty, then, here are your keys and we hope you have a pleasant stay with us at the InterContinental Miami."

"Thank you very much"

With that, we made our way up to the room. It was nice but not too extravagant. I threw my bag down on the floor and plopped down onto one of the beds.

"What do you think?" Renée looked so excited.

"It's nice, Mom." I said with my arm across my eyes.

"What do you feel like doing? Do you want to go to dinner? Do you want to go out?"

"I'm really tired. Can we just order room service?"

"Of course, whatever you want. This is your trip."

After we ate, I took a shower and got ready for bed. I had no trouble, whatsoever, falling asleep.

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I woke up to a bright light coming through the window. It took me a moment before I realized it was the sun. Living in Forks, waking up to the sun is definitely a rare occurrence. I groaned when I saw Renée bustling around the room. Don't ask me how she could be so hyped up. Charlie was sitting on the edge of their bed watching sports. _Of course. _

"Oh good, you're up." Renée said, too upbeat.

"What time is it?" I rolled over in search of a clock.

"It's 9:30. Do you want some breakfast? We ordered pastries and orange juice from Room Service."

"Breakfast sounds good."

I rolled out of bed and made my way to the bathroom to brush my teeth. I looked in the mirror and sighed. My hair was all over the place. After I brushed my teeth, I yanked a brush through my hair in an attempt to tame my wild mane. I walked back out into the room. "What's on the agenda for today?"

Renée hesitated before she began. "Well…" She looked at Charlie.

"As your graduation present, we're going-"

"ON A CRUISE!!!!!" Renée interjected, jumping up and down like a little kid in a candy story.

I froze mid-bite. _Did I just hear her correctly? Did she say cruise?_

"That's exactly what I said. We are going on a seven day Caribbean cruise." Damn brain filter.

"When do we leave?"

"The ship leaves port at 5 but we have to get there early to check in." Renée was so excited, she was talking a million miles a minute and her voice kept getting louder.

"Not that I don't appreciate it, but why would you spend so much money on me?"

"Well we thought you would enjoy it. We felt like you needed a break since you worked so hard during high school. You deserve it."

I walked up to my parents and hugged them both. "Thank you guys so much!"

"Anytime, Bells." Charlie said, hugging me back.

"So what time are we leaving?" I was starting to get excited now. This would be the first time I've gone outside the U.S.

"We have to be out of the room by Noon, so I was thinking we could leave now and go to the beach for a few hours before we board the ship."

"Fine by me."

"Perfect. Let's pack up and head down there. We'll drop the bags off at the car on our way."

Going to the beach isn't exactly my favorite activity, considering the beaches in Washington are always freezing, but it wouldn't hurt to relax a little and, maybe, get some reading done. I put my bathing suit on and threw on a pair of shorts and a tank top.

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We found a shady spot on the beach to lay our towels down. I pulled out my sunscreen and _Wuthering Heights_, hoping to get some reading done.

"You sure you don't want to come down to the water with us, Bells?" Charlie asked.

"I'm positive. I didn't get any reading done on the plane yesterday, so I want to catch up. Maybe later."

Charlie and Renée went down to the water's edge and walked down the beach, hand-in-hand. I became engrossed in the world of Cathy and Heathcliff. Out of nowhere, a Frisbee comes and hits me in my temple. "Ow."

"Sorry! Heads up!" I heard a booming voice say in the distance.

I rubbed my head as a short, pixie-like girl came over and started apologizing.

"I am so sorry. Are you ok? My dumb ass brother decided to see how far he could throw the damn Frisbee." She said with a huff.

"I'm fine. I've had worse. It's no big deal."

"I'm sorry, again. I'll make sure he keeps his strength under control." She said as she ran off. I watched her and couldn't help but notice the five other inhumanly beautiful people she ran back to. They all had pale skin, but it only added to their beauty. _Figures. _The guy at the airport would have no trouble, whatsoever, fitting in with that crowd.

Luckily, Renée didn't see the exchange. If she had, I'm sure she would've made a scene. The rest of the afternoon went by without a hitch and before I knew it, Renée and Charlie came walking up.

"You ready to head out?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah, just let me pack up my stuff."

With that, we were on our way to the cruise ship terminal.

**EPOV **

_Finally. _I thought. After six hours of flying, I just wanted to crash on a bed. We picked our bags up and made our way to pick up the three Mercedes S63 AMGs. With three girls and a seven day cruise, there is no way in hell we would be able to fit all of our luggage into two cars. Carlisle and Esme got in one car, Rose and Emmett got in the second and Alice and Jasper rode with me.

We made it to the InterContinental Miami in record time. As Cullens, we all have a need for speed. Carlisle and Esme walked up to the Reservation Desk while the rest of us took a seat on the couches provided in the lobby.

"We are so going out tonight. You can't not go to Miami and not have a night on the town. We'll go to dinner with Carlisle and Esme, then the five of us will go clubbing." Alice was nearly vibrating in her seat she was so excited. Jasper put a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her down.

"We have to figure out what we're going to wear." Rose was almost as excited as Alice. Almost being the key word.

I groaned. Clubbing was the last thing I wanted to do. I was not looking forward to girls coming up to me in an attempt to get into my pants. It was inevitable. Every time we went out, girls would shamelessly flirt with Emmett, Jasper and I only to be disappointed to find out we had girlfriends. Now that I was single, I didn't have someone to save me. "Alice, do we really have to? I just really want to sleep."

"No way, Edward. You are not bailing on us. This is exactly what you need to forget about that bitch."

"Every party has a pooper, that's why we invited you, party pooper, party pooper. Every party has a pooper that's why we invited you, Edward Cullen."

Leave it to Emmett to make a joke about my situation. "I am not a party pooper." I growled.

"Yes you are. You don't want to go out and have fun, ergot, party pooper." He relented.

"Argh! Fine, I'll go but only if you promise to get off my case."

"That's all I ask."

"Come on everyone." Esme called, sweetly.

We got up and made our way to the room. Esme and Carlisle decided to splurge on the Presidential Suite, even though we were only staying for one night.

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After Rose and Alice finally considered themselves "ready", we went to dinner with Carlisle and Esme before we went to the club. We walked up to the ropes with Rose and Alice in front, gaining easy entry. The music was bouncing off the walls. We made our way to a booth and sat down. Alice began fidgeting and, soon after, drug Jasper onto the dance floor with a quick, "See ya." Shortly after, Rose and Emmett followed, leaving me alone to fight off the wolves.

_I'm Back  
(Pull up, pull up) can't believe the girls, club packed  
(What up, what up?) shawty wanna lead me to the back (to the back)  
Ain't been in here 15 minutes, got a pocket full of digits  
And she just won't take no  
(Hold up, hold up) now little mama wanna get mad  
(Slow up, slow up) saying she doesn't wanna share what she have (she have)  
Ain't no particular one that's getting the water gun  
So many that I want_

As expected, a few girls came over to me asking me to dance. I kindly rejected them, like the gentleman my mother taught me to be, saying I was waiting for my "girlfriend". _Not anymore, _I thought to myself as they walked away. Not even two minutes later, a tall, blonde dressed in the skimpiest outfit I had ever seen came over and sat next to me, practically on my lap.

_They packed up in here wall to wall and  
I don't hear nothing but ladies calling  
I'm tryna give one of them all this  
But they keep coming from wall to wall_

_Packed up in here wall to wall and  
I don't hear nothing but ladies calling  
I'm tryna give one of them all this  
But they keep coming from wall to wall_

"Hey handsome." She said, smiling "seductively", I'm assuming.

I merely gave her a cursory nod, scooting farther away from her in the process.

"I couldn't help but notice you're alone." She ran a hand up and down my chest.

_Another two just came up and said they love me on the radio  
Two twins, that's a cool little scenario  
They talking leaving right now  
Wanna put in some time 'cause you know what they're already about  
(One talking) about she like the way that I pop  
(And the other one) said she wanna just watch  
I'm game for any damn thang, but there's more than 200 dames  
That's ready to go_

"I'm not alone; I'm waiting for my girlfriend." I lied.

_They packed up in here wall to wall and  
I don't hear nothing but ladies calling  
I'm tryna give one of them all this  
But they keep coming from wall to wall_

Packed up in here wall to wall and  
I don't hear nothing but ladies calling  
I'm tryna give one of them all this  
But they keep coming from wall to wall

"That's ok. I don't mind. Besides, I think you're lying. I saw you walk in here and you didn't walk in with anybody but those two other couples. Unless you're trying to tell me that your girlfriend is off dancing with one of your friends, I don't believe you."

_So many look good in here  
I don't even know which one I want  
If I had to choose you all know  
I would take all you all wit me  
Who wanna try me on the floor  
Who ready to come and get this  
All I know I'm feeling this party  
And you can see I'm so with it_

I sighed. "You're right; I don't have a girlfriend."

"Oh, good." Her smile grew wider.

_They packed up in here wall to wall and  
I don't hear nothing but ladies calling  
I'm tryna give one of them all this  
But they keep coming from wall to wall_

Packed up in here wall to wall and  
I don't hear nothing but ladies calling  
I'm tryna give one of them all this  
But they keep coming from wall to wall

"Here." I finished.

Her face faltered.

"Yeah. My girlfriend's back home. Actually, she's more like my fiancée and we're going to get married when I get back. She's really special to me and I don't feel like losing her over a possible mistake. Maybe I'll see you around." With that, I got up and made my way to the dance floor to look for Alice, not looking back. I'm not one to lie, but this was getting ridiculous.

_Yea smash on the radio, bet I penned it  
Yea smash on the radio, bet I penned it  
Yea smash on the radio, bet I penned it  
Yea smash on the radio, bet I penned it_

"What was that all about, Edward? That girl looked crushed when you left." Alice asked as I walked up to her.

"It was nothing. Can we go back to the hotel now? I let you have your fun, the least you can do is put me out of my misery."

Alice could tell I wasn't playing around. She agreed and we made our way back to the car. I drove faster than normal wanting to get back, take a shower, and go to sleep.

JAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJA

_Bang! Bang! Bang!_

"The sun's up, why aren't you?!" Emmett boomed as he burst through the door.

_You've got to be fucking kidding me. _I rolled over in search of a clock. 7:00. Who, in their right mind, wakes up at 7 o'clock on vacation? "What the hell do you want, Emmett?"

"We're all going down to the beach after breakfast. Do you wanna come?"

"You woke me up for that? If you value your life, you will walk away and leave me the hell alone." I didn't get to sleep until early this morning. I just wanted to drift back to sleep.

"Fine, Mr. Grouch. Be that way but you have to be up by 11." I heard his heavy footsteps as he walked back through the door and down the hallway. I set the alarm to 11 and drifted off to sleep.

jajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajajaja

_Her beautiful mahogany hair was cascading down her back, my fingers weaving themselves through her soft tresses. Her eyes fluttered close as she leaned her head in. The smell of strawberries and freesias wafted up to my nose. I cupped her cheek with my other hand and tilted my head._

_Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!_

My eyes snapped open as I slammed my hand down on the stupid contraption. How is it that all alarm clocks have impeccable timing? They always go off at the most inopportune moments. I sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing my hands over my face.

_What the hell was that? _Why would I dream about a girl I don't even know? Sure she ran into me, but I don't know anything about her. I walked to my suitcase trying to push the dream out of my mind. The rest of my family walked in as I was staring out the window overlooking the ocean.

"Hi, Sweetie." Esme said as she walked up behind me, giving me a kiss on the head.

"Hi, Mom. How was the beach?"

"It was fine except for the fact that your brother nearly gave someone a concussion with a Frisbee."

"Hey! In my defense, I yelled 'Heads up!' It's not like I was aiming straight for her head." He defended, throwing his hands up in the air just as Rose's hand made contact with his head. "Ow! Rosie, what was that for?"

"For not listening when I tell you that 'trying to test your strength' is a bad idea. We all know how strong you are, there's no need to injure innocent people in the process."

"It doesn't help when you yell 'Heads up!' after the Frisbee's already hit someone in the head. The whole point of 'Heads up!' is to prevent something like that from happening, you big oaf." Alice interjected.

Leave it to Emmett to find some way to abuse his strength.

Carlisle broke up the bickering. "Is everyone packed and ready to go?"

We agreed, called valet and the bell boy, and we were on our way to the terminal.

**A/N: OK, we love to quote movies so we give brownie points to whoever can correctly identify the movie quote. We all know you love brownie points. The hotel link will be posted on our profiles. The song in this chapter is "Wall to Wall" by Chris Brown. The songs we used in the previous chapter were "Always and Forever" by Luther Vandross, "Our Love Is Here To Stay" by Nat King Cole, and "Unchain My Heart" by Joe Cocker. Thanks for reading. Reviews are nice. ¡Adios! **


	3. Cabin Fever

Chapter 3: Cabin Fever

**Disclaimer: We do not own anything Twilight or Royal Caribbean.**

**A/N: Bonjour me amis!! So NOBODY wants brownie points??? The quote was the "Party Pooper" song from "Father of the Bride 2" I feel the need to let you all know that I, hopelessromantic09, now have my very own…Mike Newton! Yes, it is true, I have my very own retriever at school, well, at least during first period I do. Anyways, a huge thank you to the reviewer and the people who have added this to your favorite stories, it always means a lot to us. Did anybody pick up on our movie quote in the previous chapter?? I hope you enjoyed it if you did.**

**BPOV**

Once we got to the cruise ship terminal, we had to drag our bags to the check in, where they would then be delivered to our rooms later on in the day. After our bags were taken care of, we stood in line, which was a mile long, to check in and get our boarding passes. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, one of the reservation clerks raised their paddle, signaling that it was our turn.

We had to get our pictures taken so, when we got on and off the ship and scanned our boarding passes, our picture would pop up so no stow-aways entered the ship. With boarding passes in hand, we made our way towards the security lines. I groaned. I was never a fan of security stops. Before boarding, a backdrop, with the cruise ship and fish pictured, was set up for yet another picture.

Renée seemed genuinely excited. "We have to take as many pictures as we can while on this trip. Let's go!" She dragged Charlie and me towards the line. Charlie sighed, but went along with it, for her sake.

After the picture was taken by one of the crew members, we walked through a set of doors that led to the ramp up to the ship. I admit, I was now excited. I just wanted to relax, forget about all the shit that happened recently with Jacob, and forget about college applications, SATs and transcripts.

Once we set foot on the ship, we were greeted by a few more crew members. "Good afternoon! We hope you enjoy your stay on the Navigator of the Seas." She had an accent and, as I looked at her name tag, I noticed it said she was from Australia.

"Oh, I'm sure we will." Renée chirped.

"Let's head up to the rooms and get settled in." Charlie suggested. Charlie and Renée decided to get a Grand Suite for themselves and thought I deserved to have my own Junior Suite.

We walked a little more into the ship and I was floored by what I saw. Before me was the Royal Promenade. It looked like a street scene taken out of New Orleans. There were shops, but none were open yet, a casino, and even a pub. People were walking up and down digesting everything in sight. There was a huge glass elevator that overlooked the Royal Promenade. It was definitely a sight to be held.

We were currently on Deck 5 and our rooms were on Deck 10. There was a line for the elevators but, luckily, they moved pretty fast. Soon enough, the elevator stopped on Deck 10 with an announcement. "Deck 10." _Impressive_ I thought.

"1608. 1600. Ah, here we are 1598. Bells, your room is 1644, it was the closest they had available. Why don't you put your stuff down and meet us back here so we can do lunch at the Windjammer Café."

"Sounds good. I'll be right back."

I walked back down the hallway towards my room. I slipped my boarding pass/room key in the slot and pushed the door open. There was the bathroom to my left, a walk-in closet to my right, a queen sized bed, a small seating area, a desk, and even a small balcony with a table and two chairs. "I am definitely going have to thank Charlie and Renée." I said to myself. I stowed my purse in the closet, with the exception of my book, wallet, and phone, and walked back out the door.

I knocked on their door and Charlie opened it. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah, let's go." We made our way to Windjammer Café on Deck 11. It was pretty crowded, seeing as how it was one of the few amenities open before leaving port. We grabbed our food and, luckily, found a table.

"So, how do you like your room, Sweetie?"

"I love it. It's spacious and the deck is a perfect place for me to get some reading done, but I think it's too much. I would've been just fine in a regular stateroom or even staying in your suite."

"Nonsense. You worked hard during school, maintained a high GPA, and had a part-time job at Newton's. You deserve nothing less." Renée said with finality. I let the subject drop. "Anyway, what do you want to do?" She pulled out the Cruise Compass to see what activities were going on today. "At 4:30, we have the Muster Drill, so we have about two and a half hours to kill. The pools are open, as well as the bar."

"I was thinking about hanging out by the pool and reading."

"Of course you would." Charlie chimed in. "Well, what would you like to do, Renée?"

"I say we go to the bar. I am in need of a drink." Renée said, getting up. "Don't forget to be at the room by 4:00 so we have time to get to the Muster Station."

"I won't. Don't have too much fun." I called as I walked towards the glass doors that lead to the pools. There were people already in the hot tubs and kids were sliding down the water slide. I found a quieter area and sat down to relax after I set the alarm on my phone to 3:45. I, once again, got caught up in Cathy and Heathcliff's world and, before I knew it, the alarm was going off.

I pulled myself off the chair and walked back through the crowds to the stairs. I slipped my key in the slot and opened the door. I walked to the vanity and threw my book down. I looked up in the mirror and there he was. I screamed. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?!?!"

**EPOV**

In true Cullen fashion, we got to the terminal in ten minutes. Fate was with us when we found three of the best parking spots in the lot. As we were pulling our bags out of the trunks of the cars, three luggage attendants came over to offer us their services. Carlisle left them a hefty tip.

As Carlisle and Esme have travelled with Royal Caribbean before, they were members of the Crown and Anchor Society, allowing us to skip the long line and head towards the VIP check in line. Carlisle had his arms resting on the counter, giving the reservation clerk all the information she needed. She was giggling at everything he said, even if it was just our names. All of a sudden, she reached out and touched Carlisle's arm, saying how funny he was. Esme had had enough by that point. She grabbed Carlisle by the neck and pulled his face to hers for a passionate kiss. "This is my man. Get your own." That got the bitch to shut up. I don't understand how someone can openly flirt with someone shamelessly when, clearly, they are married and have a family standing right behind them.

"Ha!" Emmett yelled, pointing at the woman.

"Shut up!" Rose chided him.

After the reservation clerk was put in her place and we finished checking in, we wandered over towards the background that was set up. I was surprised when Alice insisted we take a picture, I was expecting Esme to say something, seeing as how she loves any excuse for a family photo. "Oh, look! We are so going to take every picture in front of every background this ship has to offer." I, along with Emmett, groaned at that. "Oh shut up. I will not take no for an answer. Do you understand me?" For someone so small, she certainly has a strong, authoritative personality. She yanked both Emmett and me to the backdrop. Did I mention how strong her little 5' frame is?

With the torture over with, we were finally on our way onboard. We were greeted by some of the crew members. "Welcome aboard the Navigator of the Seas. We hope you enjoy your cruising experience." The guy, I noticed from his nametag, was from Russia. I thought it was fascinating idea that all the crew members were from all over the world.

"Thank you very much." Esme offered, sweetly.

We continued on our way towards the elevators. Carlisle and Esme splurged on us. They were in the Royal Suite, to serve as our meeting place, and they got Emmett and Rose, Jasper and Alice, and me our own Junior Suites.

"Okay everyone. Your father and I are in room 1620, Rose and Emmett, you are in 1636, Alice and Jasper, you two are in 1640, and Edward, you are in 1644. The Muster Drill is at 4:30, so we will meet in our room at 3:30. Make sure to stop by your rooms to pick up your life vests. Have fun!"

With that, everyone split up. I walked into my room and flopped on the bed, pulling my iPod out. I didn't feel like walking through the crowds of already drunken people, so I figured I would stay in the cabin to clear my head. I still couldn't get the brunette out of my mind.

_Never know how much I love you, never know how much I care  
When you put your arms around me, I get a fever that's so hard to bear  
You give me fever - when you kiss me, fever when you hold me tight  
Fever - in the morning, fever all through the night.  
Sun lights up the daytime, moon lights up the night  
I light up when you call my name, and you know I'm gonna treat you right  
You give me fever - when you kiss me, fever when you hold me tight  
Fever - in the morning, fever all through the night._

I closed my eyes and, immediately, my mind was filled with pictures of the brunette. I felt even worse because I didn't even catch her name. _How can I be such a dick?_

_Everybody's got the fever, that is something you all know  
Fever isn't such a new thing, fever started long ago.  
Romeo loved Juliet, Juliet she felt the same  
When he put his arms around her, he said "Julie baby you're my flame"  
Thou givest fever, when we kisseth, fever with thy flaming youth  
Fever - I'm afire, fever yea I burn forsooth.  
Captain Smith and Pocahontas had a very mad affair  
When her Daddy tried to kill him, she said "Daddy-O don't you dare"  
He Give me fever - with his kisses, fever when he holds me tight  
Fever - I'm his Missus, Oh daddy won't you treat him right._

Of course, Peggy Lee _had_ to mention Romeo and Juliet. It's the classic, tragic love story. I'm beginning to feel like Romeo, losing my girl. But for some reason, I wasn't thinking about Tanya, I was thinking about the girl in the airport.

_Now you've listened to my story, here's the point I have made:  
Chicks were born to give you fever, be it Fahrenheit or Centigrade  
They give you fever - when you kiss them, fever if you live and learn  
Fever - till you sizzle, what a lovely way to burn.  
What a lovely way to burn.  
What a lovely way to burn._

I threw my arm over my eyes and fell asleep, my playlist still going.

I woke to the sound of the door opening. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and sat up, leaning on my forearms. There she was.

**A/N: Okey dokey artichokeys. We know this is a short chapter but there is a method to our madness. We also know that the description of the rooms may be a little off. When we went on our cruise we were in the Royal Family Suite so we don't know what the other amenities are in the other staterooms. Also, all the decks have names but we can't remember the order. If we figure it out, we'll use deck names. We will give bonus points to anybody who finds/figures out the quote. The song is "Fever" by Peggy Lee. If you listen to this song, you must snap. You can't not do it while listening to the song. Au revoire!**


	4. Gives You Hell

Ch. 4: Gives You Hell

**Disclaimer: We do not own anything Twilight or Royal Caribbean. We only own the story line.**

**A/N: Guten Tag ****meine freunde!!! OK so is nobody getting the movie quotes??? The previous chapter's quote was "HA!" "Shut Up!" from "The Breakfast Club", that is JillMH's favorite movie. On another note, a huge thanks to everybody who has added this to their story alerts, favorite stories, and for leaving us a review, you make our days. This chapter is dedicated to canibeyourmemory, simply because you are 50 different levels of awesomeness!**

**BPOV**

_Why the hell is he lying in my bed?!_

"I think you mean _my _bed."

_Did I say that out loud?_ Cocky bastard. Why must my brain filter not function when I need it the most? "No, this is definitely my bed. How did you get in here, anyways?"

"I'm guessing the same way you did; with the key." He smirked.

My heartbeat picked up. _Damn crooked smile. _"You need to get out of here right now. You are, most definitely, not staying here. Especially after you treated me like shit at the airport!"

"Yeah, about that. I'm really sorry. There is no explanation for my behavior. I know that you didn't run into me intentionally and I just blew up at you. I am truly sorry. Do you forgive me?"

"Apology not accepted. You're going to have to show me that you really mean it and that you're not normally such an asshole. Now, we need to figure out our little living arrangement situation. No way, in hell, am I sharing a room with you. The Muster Drill is starting soon, so I say we meet at the customer service desk and try to get this situated after the drill. If you'll excuse me, I need to go." I turned on my heel to leave. "Oh, and nobody is to know about this. I don't need my dad going all psycho on my ass because I have to share a room with a boy." With that, I grabbed a life vest from the closet and made my way to Charlie and Renée's room.

"Have fun!" I heard him call through the door. I could practically hear the smile on his face.

**EPOV**

She is definitely cute when she's angry. Though I can't figure out why she wouldn't accept my apology. I'll just have to show her that I truly mean it.

I grabbed the other life vest from the closet and walked to Carlisle and Esme's room. I knocked on the door and Emmett threw the door open, already wearing his life vest. "Finally. What took you so long? Did you have to beat girls away with a stick?" He quirked his eyebrows up.

"Emmett, leave your brother alone." I knew Esme would take care of Emmett. She and Rose are the only ones that he takes seriously.

"Shut up. For your information, I had a little problem with my room."

"Sure you did."

"Can I come in now?"

"Oh, yeah." He stepped aside and let me through.

As I stepped through the door, I saw the most beautiful baby grand piano I had ever seen. _I'm definitely going to have to put that piano to good use. _The bedroom was to the right and there was a huge sitting area with a bar to the left.

"Hey, Alice!" Emmett boomed.

"Yeah?" She, too, had her life vest on.

"Let's continue our little game."

"Yeah! I think I'm recovered from last time." Her eyes were glinting with mischievousness.

"On the count of three. One… Two… Three!!!"

The next thing I know, Emmett and Alice are running full on towards each other. When they were about a foot away from each other, they both jumped up and bumped their chests. Alice went flying across the room and Emmett looked on, completely unaware of their size and strength difference. Alice landed on her back on a, strategically placed, pile of pillows, giggling the entire time. "That is so much fun!" She exclaimed, breathless.

Emmett helped her up and gave her a hug. "You sure you're all right?"

"Yup. Never been better."

"That's enough of that. We don't want to make any trips down to the infirmary. Anyway, how do you like your room, Sweetie?"

"It's wonderful. Thank you, Mom and Dad. It definitely has a nice view." I wasn't just talking about the balcony.

"Good. I'm glad. Alright, is everyone ready to go?"

We all agreed and left their suite to head to our Muster Station. There were little green signs placed on the walls throughout the ship, directing people to the correct Muster Stations. We were in Station B, so we followed the signs outside towards the life boats. _That's convenient. _

We were the first one's there because Carlisle didn't want to get stuck in the back, having to fight our way back to our rooms. We weren't allowed to use the elevators, like in a real emergency, so the hallways would be packed.

We stood around and, slowly but surely, more and more people started to arrive. There were crew members walking around with video cameras, getting shots of the passengers. People were waving wildly into the cameras. My mind was elsewhere. I was on the lookout for my new roommate. I didn't spot her until about five minutes before the drill actually started. I looked at her, willing her to look at me. When she did, I smiled at her. She scowled at me and looked away, crossing her arms.

Jasper caught me staring with a smile on my face. "Is that someone you know? What did you do to her? She looks pissed."

"I don't know her." I lied.

"Sure you don't. I can practically feel the admiration rolling off of you."

_Was I really admiring her?_ I didn't think I was. "I don't know what you're talking about."

An alarm went off and an announcement was made. "This is Shane Einspahr, your Cruise Director. At this time, please watch the crew members as they demonstrate the proper way to wear your life vests as I explain. Place the vest over your head, with the reflectors facing out." The crew members did as he said. "Wrap the strap behind you and clasp it to the buckle. Pull the strap so it is secure. Each life vest is equipped with a whistle and a light that is activated when the string is pulled." I heard some of the whistles being blown. "In about 5 minutes, another alarm will sound, signaling the end of the Muster Drill. Thank you for your participation and we hope you have a wonderful experience here, onboard the Navigator of the Seas."

As promised, five minutes later, the alarm went off and people began making their way to the doors to head back to their rooms to put the life vests away. I followed behind my family so I could sneak away to the customer service desk. Nobody noticed when I slipped away.

I waited for a few minutes before I saw her. She still had that scowl on her face. "Hey, Roomie!"

"Let's just get this over with. There's got to be another room that one of us can move into." _She's definitely not in a good mood. _I didn't see anything wrong in this situation. Sure we'll sleep in the same room, but we definitely will not be sleeping in the bed together. We don't even have to talk if she doesn't want to. Although, I would like to get to know her better.

"Good afternoon! How can I help you today?" The woman was a tall blonde and, according to her nametag, she was from Denmark.

"Yes, my _friend_ and I have a little problem." She said _friend_ with disgust. "We ended up in the same room but we don't even know each other. I'm sure there is an available cabin that one of us can have."

The woman turned to her computer and typed in a few things. "I'm sorry, but all our staterooms are booked." She shook her head.

I turned to the clerk, "Are you sure there is nothing available? Anything at all?" I gave her my crooked smile that women always seem to fall for.

She was speechless for a second. "Uh… N-no. I'm truly sorry. There's nothing available. We will be more than happy to take care of any of your other needs. I'll have a plate of chocolate-covered strawberries sent up to your stateroom. Again, I am really sorry."

"Thank you for your time." I turned back around and walked away.

"Ok, Romeo. What the hell was that?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, don't you dare give me that shit! You know damn well what you did. Thanks to you, there are probably going to be love notes slipped under our door at two o'clock in the morning asking for a booty call."

_Did she just say "booty call"? _"I was just trying to get you what you wanted. It, usually, never fails. And besides, what if I'm not interested in any love notes from her? What if I prefer brunettes?" I reached up to tuck a lock of her hair back into place.

She slapped my hand away. "Whatever. Let's go back to the room and try to figure this out. This is so messed up. I was expecting to have a relaxing vacation and, now, I have to spend it with the most conceited person on the planet. Can my life get any worse?"

"Ouch. I said I was sorry. What more do you want from me?"

"I want us to be in separate rooms. Apparently, that won't happen until pigs fly."

"It'll all work out. Don't sweat it."

We were back at the room now and I slipped my key in, pushing the door open. "Ladies first."

"Thank you." She walked in and began pacing.

I walked over to a knob on the wall and twisted it. The room was filled with music.

_I wake up every evening, with a big smile on my face  
And it never feels out of place  
And your still probably working at a 9 to 5 pace  
I wonder how bad that tastes_

_When you see my face  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell  
When you walk my way  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell_

"Perfect" She sneered. She moved over to the couch and sat down, putting her head in her hands. I sat on the edge of the bed.

_Now where's your picket fence, Love?  
And where's that shiny car?  
And did it ever get you far?  
You've never seemed so tense, Love  
I've never seen you fall so hard,  
Do you even know where you are?_

And truth be told I miss you  
And truth be told I'm lying

"What? You don't like the All-American Rejects?"

_When you see my face  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell  
When you walk my way  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell_

_  
If you find a man that's worth a damn and treats you well  
Then he's a fool, you're just as well, hope it gives you hell  
I hope it gives you hell_

Tomorrow you'll be thinking to yourself  
Yeah, Where'd it all go wrong? But the list goes on and on

And truth be told I miss you  
And truth be told I'm lying

"It's not that I don't like them. It's the fact that this song explains exactly how I'm feeling right at this moment. I was expecting to spend ten days in Florida. I got here and my mom and dad surprised me with a cruise. I was expecting to have my own room, not that I was planning on spending much time in here, with my own bed. Now I have to share a room with you, sleeping on a couch that's too short."

_When you see my face  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell  
When you walk my way  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell_

_If you find a man that's worth a damn and treats you well  
Then he's a fool, you're just as well, hope it gives you hell_

_Now you'll never see, what you've done to me  
You can take back your memories, they're no good to me  
And here's all your lies, you can look me in the eyes  
With that sad, sad look that you wear so well_

I didn't know what to say to her since my usual tactics don't seem to work on her. I settled for something simple, "I'm sorry you feel that way. And I am too much of a gentleman to let you sleep on the couch. I'll gladly take the couch so you can be comfortable on the bed."

_When you see my face  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell  
When you walk my way  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell_

_If you find a man that's worth a damn and treats you well  
Then he's a fool, you're just as well, hope it gives you hell_

_When you see my face  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell  
When you walk my way  
Hope it gives you hell, Hope it gives you hell_

_When you hear this song and sing along, well you'll never tell  
And you're the fool, I'm just as well, Hope it gives you hell  
When you hear this song I hope that it will give you hell  
You can sing along, I hope that it puts you through hell_

" Are you sure you want to sleep on the couch. I'm shorter than you, so it'll be a little more comfortable for me than you. It's not like you or I had any control over this situation. We'll just have to make do."

"I'm one hundred percent positive that I will be sleeping on the couch, no questions asked. And I agree that we'll have to make do with our predicament. So, since we're going to be spending the next seven days in the same room, I think it's fitting that I get your name."

"Bella, Bella Swan. Yours?"

"Cullen, Edward Cullen."

"Thanks for the intro, James Bond." She laughed and it was the best sound in the world. Her laugh was contagious, and I couldn't help but join her.

"Anytime. So, where are you from?"

"I'm from Forks. I'm assuming you know where that is, seeing as how we 'met' at Sea-Tac Airport."

"Yes, I do know where that is. I'm from Seattle, just graduated from high school."

"Me, too. So is this trip a graduation present? Mine is."

"Yup. It seems like our parents had the same idea."

"That they did."

"Do you want to head up to the Lido deck to watch the ship leave dock?"

"Sure. Just let me tell my parents. Knowing Renée, she's probably freaking already. I'm surprised she hasn't come around, banging on the door."

"I should probably let my family know as well. And it's agreed that no one but us is to know about this, correct?"

"Correct."

"Sounds good. I'll meet you by the pool." With that, we both left to start, what I'm sure is going to be the most interesting vacation I've ever been on.

**A/N: Ok so we hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll explain the significance of the game that Emmett and Alice are playing. On our very first cruise, we were getting ready to go to the muster stations for our life boat drill; our mom was taking forever and we had our life vests and were waiting to go. We both put on our life vests and I had the idea to do a chest bump with her because now it wouldn't hurt, I am extremely weak and she is very strong. I went to the side of the room with the beds on it and she went over by the door. We counted to three and ran towards each other. We hit, and we hit hard. I, of course, fell back and she remained standing. We did get a scolding from our mom but it was so much fun!! Now, every time we go on a cruise and it's time to do the life boat drill, we throw on our life vests and do a chest bump. The song in this chapter is "Gives You Hell" by The All-American Rejects. Reviews are welcomed. Hopefully we'll update soon. FYI, in the beginning A/N, it says "Hello my friends!" Auf ****Wiedersehen!**


	5. At the Beginning

Ch. 5: At the Beginning

**Disclaimer: We do not own anything Twilight or Royal Caribbean.**

**A/N: Hallo ****mijn vrienden! (That's Dutch.) Sorry for taking so long to update, one of us is in college and one of us is a high school senior. We forgot to put a quote in the last chapter so we put two in this one. Once again, thanks to canibeyourmemory and everyone else who reviewed, added story alerts, author alerts, and favorite stories alerts. **

**BPOV**

"Hey, Romeo" I said when I caught sight of Edward lounging on one of the deck chairs.

"Hey. I was beginning to think you were going to stand me up."

I took the seat next to him. "Sorry. Just as expected, Renée was freaking. It's not like she wouldn't be able to find me. There are only so many places to go on a cruise ship."

"No problem. So, what's your family like anyway?"

"Well, my mom is scatterbrained and she's always picking up and dropping a new hobby. This month's hobby is pottery making and she decided to drag me along. I really don't like getting all the clay on me, but I do it for her. She's more like a best friend than a mother, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Charlie is quiet, for the most part. He's the Chief of Police in Forks, so it keeps him busy. He doesn't really wear his emotions on his sleeve, so it can get awkward sometimes. But again, I wouldn't change it for anything. We're all pretty close, so it works for us. What about you?" The whole time he was listening to me, he seemed truly interested in what I had to say. I've never really told anyone about my family. The only person I told was my best friend, Angela, yet I already feel comfortable telling him, a complete stranger, anything. This is definitely going to be an interesting vacation.

"Let's see, my mother, Esme, is an interior designer. She loves fixing up and furnishing houses, so we move quite a lot. She also is very passionate about our family, so she has a huge collection of family pictures. She's very caring and motherly and I love her dearly. Carlisle is one of the best surgeons in the country. He, very much, acts the part of patriarch of the family and keeps us in line. Emmett is my older brother, but he never acts it. I sometimes think that he's a five year old kid, stuck in a nineteen year old's body. The only one, besides my mother, who can keep him in line, is his girlfriend, Rosalie. She and her twin brother, Jasper, came to live with us after their parents died. They were good friends of the family, and Esme didn't have the heart to see them go into the system. Anyway, Rose is definitely a free spirit. She doesn't take shit from anybody, is very capable of taking care of herself in any situation, and has a knack for cars."

"Really? I was never good with cars. I'm jealous." I said, humorously.

"Yeah, if my Volvo needs work, she's the only person I trust. Anyway, Jasper is my twin, Alice's, boyfriend. He's quiet and always seems to know what we're feeling. It's kind of creepy if you ask me. Regardless, if I need to talk to one of my brothers, he's the one I go to. I don't want to have Emmett making fun of my problems. He does that already, even though I don't really tell him anything. But yeah, Jasper loves Alice, and would do anything for her. Alice is a firecracker. She's got boundless energy. That, combined with an addiction to shopping, is definitely not a good combo. She and I are really close. I should introduce you to her; I think you'll like her." He spoke of his family with total admiration. I could tell they are really close, just like Charlie, Renée and I are.

"Your family sounds nice, not to mention, interesting." I said with a laugh.

"If I'm not mistaken, I believe we are going to be leaving port in about two minutes. Shall we?" He stood up, offering me his hand.

I blushed, but took his hand anyway. He led me up to Deck 12 and found us a perfect spot. I let go of his hand when we got there. The lost contact was strange, and all I wanted to do was pick his hand back up again. _What the hell is wrong with you, Bella?_ I couldn't help but notice all the stares we were earning on our way. Some girls were in awe of the god holding my hand, while others were glaring at me, probably feeling jealous that I was the one he was holding hands with. I looked down in embarrassment.

He turned to me, "Am I forgiven yet?"

"I'm not quite ready to forgive you yet, Romeo." I smiled and turned my head back towards the ocean.

The horn on the ship blew and, with that, we were off on, what I was hoping to be, our crazy, little adventure. "This is so exciting!" I don't know what came over me, but I was jumping up and down like a little kid, who was just told they were going to Disneyland.

He laughed, "Yes, it is."

We stayed up there for a couple hours talking. "Now that we're actually sailing, do you want to head back down by the pool to listen to the band that's playing?" He flashed me that crooked smile and, once again, my heartbeat picked up. _Stupid, crooked smile. _

"Sure. Let's go." Again, he put his hand out for me to grab and I was more than eager to take it. We made it back down to the pool area where the band was playing. They had just began to play a new song.

_We were strangers starting out on a journey  
Never dreaming what we'd have to go through  
Now here we are and I'm suddenly standing  
At the beginning with you_

No one told me I was going to find you  
Unexpected what you did to my heart  
When I lost hope you were there to remind me  
This is the start

"Come on, let's dance."

He started pulling me out where a few other couples were dancing but I protested. "I don't think that's such a good idea. I don't dance. I don't know if you know this, but I am a huge klutz and dancing combined with me, definitely does not work."

"Relax, Bella. Trust me, I won't let you fall. Besides, it's all in the leading." He smiled his crooked smile at me once again and my resolve melted away.

"Fine, but if I end up on my ass, you're going to be sleeping in the hallway tonight." I glared at him.

_And Life is a road and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep flowing  
Life is a road now and forever  
A Wonderful journey_

I'll be there when the world stops turning  
I'll be there when the storm is through  
In the end I wanna be standing  
At the beginning with you

We were strangers on a crazy adventure  
Never dreaming how our dreams would come true  
Now here we stand unafraid of the future  
At the beginning with you

He began twirling us effortlessly across the dance floor and, to my surprise, I started to enjoy myself. His hands were so strong and sure, that I knew he wouldn't let anything happen to me. I smiled, "Ok, I have to admit, you are a very good dancer."

"I told you that you could trust me. Now don't distract me or we both might end up on our asses." I froze and my expression turned to one of shock. "I'm just kidding, Bella. I could do this in my sleep. Esme made all of us take dance lessons a couple of years ago. I never thought they would pay off, but I'm pleasantly surprised."

_And Life is a road and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep flowing  
Life is a road now and forever  
A Wonderful journey_

I'll be there when the world stops turning  
I'll be there when the storm is through  
In the end I wanna be standing  
At the beginning with you

_I knew there was somebody somewhere  
Like me alone in the dark  
Now I know my dream will live on  
I've been waiting so long  
Nothing's gonna tear us apart_

The next thing I know, he twirled me out of his arm and twirled me back in. "Impressive." I said as I bumped back into his chest.

"Thank you. You are a very good dancer, you just don't realize it."

I looked down to hide the blush that was creeping its way up my cheeks.

_And Life is a road and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep flowing  
Life is a road now and forever  
A Wonderful journey_

I'll be there when the world stops turning  
I'll be there when the storm is through  
In the end I wanna be standing  
At the beginning with you

_Life is a road and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep going on  
Starting out on a journey_

_Life is a road and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep flowing  
In the end I wanna be standing  
At the beginning with you_

"I guess we better get ready for dinner."

"Is it that late already? What time is it?"

"It's 7:45. Dinner's at 8:30 and I know Emmett won't want to be late."

"I'm sure he wouldn't. I bet Renée's probably wondering where I am again. It's probably a good idea to get going." We walked back down to Deck 10 together, not holding hands of course. We already risked being caught twice tonight. He went to Carlisle and Esme's room, while I went to Charlie and Renée's room.

**EPOV**

I knocked on the door and Jasper opened it up. "There you are; we were beginning to think you fell overboard. Did you meet up with your little lady friend?"

"Again, I don't know what you're talking about. The only people I know here are you guys." I walked in and shut the door.

"There you are. Emmett's been going crazy thinking we were going to be the last ones in line to get into the dining room." Carlisle seemed relieved knowing he wouldn't have to hear Emmett complain anymore.

Esme walked through the door just then, "Is everyone ready to go? Alice and Rose are in Rose's room getting ready. We'll pick them up on the way."

"Hell yeah, I'm starving!" Emmett boomed. He nearly ran out the door, almost bowling over Alice, who was standing in the doorway.

"Anxious, much? I figured you guys were almost ready. Although, I wasn't anticipating almost getting trampled by a starving Emmett."

Rose smacked Emmett on the arm, "I already told you that there will be enough food. Now stop acting like you haven't eaten in years."

Emmett hung his head, "Yes, Rose."

"Alright everyone, let's get going."

We walked down to the Deck 5 and there was already a line forming. Everyone was dressed casually because the bags hadn't been delivered to the rooms yet. I was wondering if Bella would be seated near us. For the sake of our situation, I hoped that she wasn't, but another part of me hoped that she was. I had just seen her ten minutes ago, but I was already longing to see her again.

After about a half hour, the doors to the dining room were opened. There were maitre d's were waiting to show the guests to their tables. We were led to a table big enough for ten. Carlisle sat at one head of the table, Esme was to his left, Rose sitting next to her, and Emmett next to Rose. I was on Carlisle's right, Jasper next to me, and Alice next to him.

Five minutes later, a man and woman came up to our table, following the same maitre d that led us to our table. "Here we are, enjoy your dinner." The man sat at the other end of the table with the woman to his left.

"Thank you," the woman said.

Esme was always eager to meet new people, so she started off the introductions, "Good evening. I'm Esme Cullen." She got up and went over to shake their hands, with Carlisle following. "This is my husband, Carlisle Cullen."

"Good evening. I'm Renée and this is my husband, Charlie." I choked on my water. _It couldn't be, could it? These are not Bella's parents. _I was trying to convince myself that this was not happening. "Our daughter will be joining us shortly; she forgot her wallet in her room." _How many people are named Charlie and Renée and just happen to have a daughter?_ This is, definitely, going to be an interesting dinner.

"Oh, no worries. Let me introduce you to the rest of our family. Our son, Edward is on the end, Jasper is next to him, with his girlfriend, our daughter, Alice, next to him. That's Emmett, our other son, next to his girlfriend, Rosalie. It's a pleasure to meet you." Esme and Carlisle took their seats again.__

Sure enough, not long after the introductions were finished, Bella walked up next to her parents, giving them each a hug. She took the empty seat next to Charlie. "I'm so sorry I'm late." She hadn't noticed me yet.

"Don't worry about it; we already explained to the Cullens." Bella stiffened in her chair. She slowly turned her head and looked at me. I shrugged slightly so no one else could see the gesture.

Jasper leaned over and whispered, "Isn't that your lady friend?" He smirked, knowingly.

I pretended like I didn't hear him. Esme introduced Bella to the rest of our family. She avoided looking at me as much as possible. Our waitress, who was from the Philippines, that was to take care of our drinks came over and got our drink orders. She brought them out, along with some bread.

Carlisle and Esme fell into easy conversation with Charlie and Renée. After we were a little more settled in, the other waitress, who was from Thailand, took our food orders and left. Alice chose that moment to speak the words I never thought I would hear. "Aren't you that girl from the beach? The one that Emmett," she glared at him, "hit in the head with the Frisbee?" A look of horror crossed my face. She's lucky he didn't do any damage. Flying objects with the force of Emmett behind them do not mix. _Did they already meet? Bella was the girl that he hit with the Frisbee?_

Bella seemed to piece two and two together, "Yes, I am."

"Again, I am really sorry about that." Emmett apologized, seeming nervous.

"I'm fine. No blood, no foul." She smiled genuinely at him. That seemed to ease his nerves, as well as mine. The waitress came back with our salads and soups. Alice and Bella continued talking, while Jasper joined in the conversation that Emmett and Rose were having. I didn't mind because I didn't want anyone to suspect anything. I stared down into my lap until our entrées arrived.

Emmett took one look at his plate and had to comment, "These are definitely not Emmett sized portions." I'm guessing the waitress heard because she came back with another plate for Emmett. That seemed to make him happy.

I kept sneaking glances at Bella and, a couple of times, I caught her staring back. When I would catch her, she would blush and look down. Everyone had finished eating when the dessert menus were brought out. Emmett, the bottomless pit that he was, ordered two desserts. I figured it would be awkward if Bella and I were seen going into the same room, so I skipped dessert and excused myself, claiming I wasn't feeling too well.

I noticed our bags were sitting outside our door, so I pulled them in before anyone from either of our families could notice the mixed luggage. After I pulled them into the room, I flopped on the couch after grabbing my iPod. I slouched down into the cushions and lay my head back.

Twenty minutes later, I heard the door opening. I looked up and Bella stood in front of me with a look of relief on her face. "Can life be any more ironic?" She sat on the edge of the bed.

"I was not expecting to be sitting at the same table. It's definitely going to make things a little bit more difficult, but not impossible. At least we have an excuse for spending time together."

She chuckled, "What makes you think I want to spend time with you?"

My mouth dropped, "I-I just thought we could get to know each other." I looked away in embarrassment.

She started laughing, "I'm just kidding. You should have seen your face; it was priceless." She lay back on the bed and started laughing uncontrollably.

"How rude." I pretended to be offended.

She sat up again, "Edward, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean anything by it." Her words were sincere.

Now it was my turn to laugh, "I know, I was kidding. Two can play at that game."

She turned around to grab a pillow to chuck at my head. I caught it before it could hit me in the face. I tossed it back, but she wasn't looking so it hit her in the face. "No fair! I wasn't looking!"

I stood up and walked towards her, "Life's tough, get a helmet." I, playfully, hit her forehead with the palm of my hand. I pulled my suitcase from the closet to grab my pajamas. "I'm going to change and brush my teeth."

"Alright, when you're done, I'm going to take my shower." With that, I closed the bathroom door and leaned against it for a minute before I started my nightly routine.

When I was done, I opened the door and she was standing there, her clothes and toiletry bag in hand. "Took you long enough, Romeo."

"I was only in there for five minutes."

"Yeah, five minutes too long." She smiled as she made her way into the bathroom.

I smiled back, "I'll try not to take so long next time."

While Bella was in the shower, I called hospitality management to have extra pillows and blankets brought to the room for me.

She walked out of the bathroom as I was finishing up making my "bed". "Are you sure you don't want me to take the couch?" She asked for the hundredth time.

"Bella, I already told you, I really don't mind sleeping on the couch. Now stop worrying, I'll be perfectly fine."

"Ok, fine, I'll stop asking." She climbed into the bed. "Good night, Edward."

"Sweet dreams, Bella." I fell asleep shortly after.

**A/N: The song in this chapter is "At The Beginning" by Donna Lewis and Richard Marx. The story behind "Emmett sized portions" is the first cruise that our parents went on together. Our dad said, "These aren't Bob sized portions." Every night at dinner after he said that, the waitress brought two plates of food for him. Needless to say he was a happy camper after that. We will gladly accept any suggestions or comments, we need the constructive criticism. Hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading! ****Doei!**


	6. I'm Sorry

Ch. 6: I'm Sorry

**A/N: Buongiorno ****I miei amici!! (That's Italian.) Thanks to the reviewers, especially canibeyourmemory. (See, if you review every chapter, you can get your name in a story too. Just kidding!! But seriously, we love reviews.) The quotes in the last chapter were "How rude." From "Full House" and "Life's tough, get a helmet." From Boy Meets World, we're 90s kids, can you tell? **

**BPOV**

I groaned and rolled over onto my back. My eyes fluttered open and I stared at the ceiling. I heard the bathroom door open and sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.

Edward was dressed in khaki shorts and a forest green polo shirt and his hair was glistening from the shower he had just taken. He looked absolutely breathtaking_. Argh! Bella, you still haven't forgiven him yet. Why haven't I forgiven him yet?_ He saw that I was awake and smiled that crooked smile. As expected, my heartbeat picked up pace and I felt the heat rise to my face. "Morning, Sleepy Head."

"Good morning. What time is it?" I asked, my voice still hoarse from sleep.

"It's 8:30. So, I was thinking that we could go grab some breakfast." His hand went to the back of his neck and he looked…..nervous.

"Um…yeah, sure. Just give me ten minutes to get ready." I tried hopping out of bed, but my legs were tangled up in the sheets. I was just about to do a face plant into the floor when I felt two strong arms wrap around me. Edward pulled me up, my body crashing to his.

"Are you alright?" He sounded concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." His arms were still encircled around me and I looked up into his emerald green eyes. We were both leaning in towards each other. Our lips were almost touching. _What am I doing? _I pulled away, breaking free of his grasp. I felt the blush rising up again, a hundred times worse.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. That was completely out of line." He stepped away and walked back towards the couch.

"It's fine. Let's just pretend like that never happened." _Like that'll ever happen. _

I walked to my suitcase and pulled out my toiletry bag, a pair of dark blue denim shorts, and a royal blue tank top. I shut the bathroom door and slid down against it, wrapping my arms around my knees. _What just happened? _When our lips were almost touching, I felt a surge of electricity shoot throughout my body. My heart wanted the kiss to happen, but my head thought otherwise. I pushed that thought to the back of my mind and stood up. _How hard could it be to forget the almost kiss with a Greek god?_

After I brushed my teeth and changed, I emerged from the bathroom. Edward was still on the couch, his head leaning back and eyes closed, listening to his iPod.

"You ready to go?"

He jumped at the sound of my voice, "Yeah." He got up and made his way to the door. Before walking out, he looked up and down the hallways to make sure none of our family was lingering. Once we determined the coast was clear, he ushered me out the door. The tension between us was palpable, even though there was a distance of about two feet between us.

We made it down to The Nutcracker Dining Room on Deck 3 and were lead to a table by one of the Maître D's. We were perusing the menus when I attempted to start up a conversation to ease some of the awkwardness. "So, where's the rest of your family?"

"Alice called me about a half hour before you woke up wondering if I wanted to grab breakfast with them at the Windjammer Café." _Did he really skip breakfast with his family to go with me? _"I told them I would pass this time."

The waiter came over to our table to take our order. "Not that I'm protesting, but why did you skip breakfast with your family?"

He was about to take a sip of his water when he froze, "Um…I said I wanted to sleep for another hour or so. They were all ready to go, so I would've had to rush getting ready." He didn't seem confident in his answer.

"Then why were you already up and showered when I woke up?"

"I couldn't go back to sleep. If you had Alice practically screaming into your ear at 8 in the morning, you would have trouble going back to sleep, too."

I laughed. I hadn't known Alice very long, but I could already tell that she was a ball of energy. "Yeah, I'm sure you're right."

As we were conversing and eating, the tension between us, slowly but surely, faded away.

"Were you planning on spending the day by the pool checking out scantily clad girls?"

"Actually, I was hoping that we could spend the day together." He pulled out the daily Cruise Compass. "Alice said that she and Jasper were going to go to the 'Discover St. Thomas and St. Maarten Shopping Show' in Studio B. Carlisle and Esme said something about ingo and I think they mentioned inviting your parents. At 11:30, there's going to be ice skating. I think that would be fun." He saw the apprehension on my face, "Unless you don't want to."

"Ok, I'll make you a deal: I'll agree to go ice skating if you promise to not let go of my hand and let me fall."

"Deal." He stuck out his hand for me to shake. I took it, without hesitation, and smiled.

We finished eating, but continued with the, now easy, flow of conversation. The Maître D' came over, "I'm sorry to interrupt, but the dining room is going to be closing soon."

Edward spoke up, "Of course, no problem." He stood up and reached for my hand. I took

"What are we going to do to kill time, Romeo?"

"Well, there really aren't many activities before ice skating. We could go the Ixtapa Lounge for bingo with our parents."

"That's fine by me." We wanted to buy our bingo tickets and get good seats, so we made our way towards the Ixtapa Lounge. We took the elevator up two levels to Deck 5. Before entering the lounge, I dropped Edward's hand. He looked at me, hurt. I smiled, reassuringly, "I just don't want to get caught by our families. We would, definitely, have a lot of explaining to do if they found out."

"Oh, yeah, you're probably right. I didn't think about that." He seemed relieved that I didn't pull my hand away for no reason.

We walked into the lounge and found an empty booth that was big enough to seat all of us. There was a crescent shaped bench, a bench that was big enough to fit two people and swiveled around, with a table between the two. I sat down on one of the ends of the crescent shaped bench and Edward sat next to me.

As soon as we sat down, one of the drink servers came over, smiling, to offer us a drink, "Good morning, my name is Will and I'll be taking care of your table this morning." I noticed his accent and looked at Will's nametag and noticed that he was from England.

I heard a low growl and turned to Edward. He was glaring, murderously, at Will. I put my hand on Edward's knee to try to calm him down; it helped marginally, "Um, what do you recommend?"

"Well, I'm guessing you are underage, so I would suggest a virgin tequila sunrise, a virgin frozen daiquiri, or a virgin madras."

"The virgin madras sounds good. Edward, do you want anything?"

He was still glaring and still seemed upset, "I'll take a safe sex on the beach."

"Sounds good, I'll be right back with your drinks."

Once Will was out of earshot, I pulled my hand off Edward's knee and turned to him, "What the hell is your problem?"

He looked questioningly at me, "You mean to tell me that you didn't notice the way _Will _was looking at you?" I shook my head. "He was staring down your shirt and undressing you with his eyes!" Edward was seething.

"He was not!" I yelled. I didn't want to believe him. "Will seems like a nice enough guy. I don't see why you have to act so rude. He was just doing his job."

"What?! Is undressing innocent women with your eyes now a profession?"

I couldn't believe he had just said that. "You are unbelievable!" I got up and moved to the smaller bench, which was facing away from Edward. I crossed my arms and faced forward, staring at nothing in particular.

I felt, more than saw, Edward come and sit next to me. "Bella, I'm sorry. I overreacted. I just feel really protective over you and I don't want to see you get hurt. I've done a great job of that, haven't I?" he said sarcastically.

"I am more than capable of taking care of myself, thank you very much."

"I know. Bella, you are a strong, independent, beautiful woman who doesn't need anyone to take care of you." _Did he just call me beautiful?_ "I really don't know why I overreacted. Here I am trying to keep you from getting hurt, when I actually hurt you myself. I'm really sorry, do you forgive me?" I chanced a look at him. His head was down, looking at me from under his lashes. His bottom lip minutely stuck out in a pout. The sight was almost heartbreaking.

I sighed, "Fine. I forgive you, but that's strike one. Two more strikes, and I really will kick you out of the room."

He surprised me by pulling me into a tight embrace. I froze for a second before I wrapped my arms around him, returning the gesture. "Thank you, Bella. It won't happen again, I promise. If it does, I will fully understand you kicking me out. I really am sorry."

I pulled back, "I know." Somewhere in between our talk, our drinks had arrived. I picked up my drink and noticed that, on the napkin, there was a note: _My shift ended, but I'd really like to get to know you better. I'm on Deck 2, room 2340. _I crumpled the note and threw it on the table. Edward picked it up and read it. His brow was slightly furrowed and I was expecting another blow up.

**EPOV**

I read the note that Will left for Bella. I really didn't feel comfortable with her going to see that dumb ass, but it was not my place to tell her what she could and couldn't do. "If you want to go see him, you can."

She smiled. _Oh great, I shouldn't have said that. _"I don't think I will." I sighed in relief. I noticed, in the sudden peacefulness, that there was music playing before the game actually started.

_Oh I had a lot to say was thinking on my time away  
I missed you and things weren't the same_

_Cause everything inside it never comes out right  
And when I see you cry it makes me want to die_

_I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm sorry you're blue, I'm sorry about all the things I said to you  
And I know I can't take it back  
I love how you kiss, I love all your sounds, and baby the way you make my world go round  
And I just wanted to say I'm sorry_

I stood and reached for Bella's hand. She took it, and I led her back to our previous seats. I looked back and saw Carlisle and Esme walking in with Charlie and Renée. I dropped Bella's hand and I waved them over. Esme took the seat next to me, Carlisle was next to her, followed by Renée and then Charlie on the other end.

"Hi Sweetie, I wasn't expecting to see you here." Renée said, taking her seat.

"Edward and I met up for breakfast, but we stayed a little too long talking, so we got kicked out. We were going to go ice skating, but that doesn't start until 11:30 so we had about an hour to kill."

_This time I think I'm to blame it's harder to get through the days  
You get older and blame turns to shame_

_Cause everything inside it never comes out right  
And when I see you cry it makes me want to die_

_I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm sorry you're blue, I'm sorry about all things I said to you  
And I know I can't take it back  
I love how you kiss, I love all your sounds, and baby the way you make my world go round  
And I just wanted to say I'm sorry_

"It certainly seems like you two are getting along just fine." Esme noted the nonexistent space between Bella and me. Bella blushed and scooted a little bit away from me. "Anyway, Rose and Emmett should be here shortly. After breakfast, they disappeared, but said they would meet us here." I can only imagine what Rose and Emmett were up to. I was almost 100 percent positive it involved mental pictures I never wanted to see in my mind.

Sure enough, five minutes later, Emmett and Rosalie walked in. Emmett had the goofiest grin across his face and Rose looked more than pleased. "Hey everyone!" He boomed. He started singing the bingo song but didn't get very far into it before Rose stepped in.

"Emmett, do you honestly have to act like a five year old all day, every day?"

"Aww, come on, Baby. I don't think you would've said that fifteen minutes ago." He smiled and slapped Rose on the ass. He should have known better because Rose slapped him right back on his arm. _He is so whipped._

_Every single day I think about how we came all this way  
The sleepless nights and the tears you cried it's never too late to make it right  
Oh yeah sorry!_

_I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm sorry you're blue, I'm sorry about all things I said to you  
And I know I can't take it back  
I love how you kiss, I love all your sounds, and baby the way you make my world go round  
And I just wanted to say I'm sorry_

_I'm sorry, Baby. I'm sorry, Baby_

_I'm sorry_

Rose and Emmett sat on the bench in front of us. The music stopped and a crew member walked on stage with a microphone. "Good afternoon, everyone! I am Jay and I am your Bingo Boy here, onboard the Navigator of the Seas. At this time, we will begin selling the bingo tickets. Single game cards will be $5 and three game cards will be $10. The games will begin in ten minutes. Good luck!"

Carlisle offered to buy the tickets, "If you guys want to give me your money for your tickets, I will gladly get them for you." Everyone decided to play the three game cards, so we gave him our money. I handed Carlisle a twenty and told him to buy myself a card, as well as one for Bella. Before Bella could hand Carlisle the money, he was gone.

"Don't worry, I took care of it." I reassured her.

"Edward, you didn't have to do that. Here, take this." She handed me a ten dollar bill.

I pushed it back at her, "I'm not going to take your money."

"I just don't feel right having you pay for me."

"How about you pay next time we both play?"

"You have to promise though. I'm not going to have you pay for everything." She took the money back.

"I promise."

Carlisle returned with the bingo cards. I took mine and Bella's and thanked him. I looked toward the stage, but couldn't see anything with Emmett's big head in the way. "Hey, Emmett?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you and Rose mind switching seats with Bella and me? We can't see over your head."

"Sure, but I can't help it if I have a big brain." I stifled a laugh.

The four of us got up and switched seats. Bella had her hands at her side, and I couldn't help myself. I grabbed her hand and began tracing patterns on the back of it, making sure nobody else could see. She looked at me and smiled.

Jay came back onstage and the games began. The first five games went by without a single person from our party winning. "Okay everyone, this is the final game for this set of Bingo and the winner will get $250. Good luck, and thanks again for playing."

He began calling the numbers. I looked behind me and noticed that Charlie already had a couple of chances to win with one number. Bella and I didn't really have shit. Jay kept calling the numbers, but I never heard Charlie yell 'Bingo!'. I looked at Bella, and was shocked; she needed one number to get bingo.

"I 21!" Jay called.

"Edward, I won."

"Bella, you have to yell 'Bingo!' or it's not going to count."

"It's ok; I know Charlie only has a couple numbers that he needs to win."

I stood up just in time, "BINGO!"

"What are you doing?" She hissed.

"I'm claiming your bingo."

She slouched in her seat and the most beautiful blush graced her cheeks.

"It looks like we might have a winner. Are there any other bingos in the house?" No one answered. "Alrighty then, De, could you read the numbers back to me to confirm the bingo?"

A woman, who was from New Zealand, came over and took Bella's card to read the numbers to Jay. "And we have a winner! Congratulations! Step right up and claim your prize."

Bella looked apprehensive, "Are you ok?"

"I just don't like all the attention."

"Do you want to go up by yourself, or do you want me to go with you?"

She looked down, "Can you come with me?" She whispered.

"Of course." We stood up and I reached for her hand to rub soothing circles on to calm her down. We got to the stage and Bella received her winnings.

"Thanks." She said as we were walking back to our families, our hands still linked together.

"Anytime." I smiled down at her.

We made it back to the table and all the cheering from everybody suddenly stopped. I was confused until I felt Bella squeeze my hand. It was then that I realized what they saw; Bella and I were still holding hands. I looked at my parents and then at Bella's. Charlie looked furious. I dropped her hand, hoping they would let it drop. _Oh shit!_

**A/N: Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it. The song in this chapter was "I'm Sorry" by Buckcherry. There is a quote in this chapter, so let us know if you find it. The madras in this chapter is, according to JillMH, the best virgin drink ever. Personally, I think a virgin Miami Vice is the best virgin drink. Arrivederci!**


	7. Without You

Ch. 7: Without You

**A/N: Hei Hei Hei ****ystävilleni!!!!**** (That's Finnish. We saw "Confessions of a Shopaholic".) The quote from last chapter was "Step right up and claim your prize." From "White Chicks". Once again, thanks for all your reviews, story alerts, author alerts, favorite story, and favorite authors. A special thanks goes out to canibeyourmemory for leaving the best reviews. **

**EPOV**

Charlie began interrogating Bella, "What was that, Bells?"

"Oh, it was nothing." _Nothing?_ "I was just nervous about being the center of attention, you know how I get, and Edward was just trying to help calm my nerves."

I went along with Bella, "It's true, Sir. She was nervous about going up there all alone, so I offered to go up onstage to reassure her."

"As long is there no funny business going on between you two, then I'll let it go." Charlie said sternly. He leaned towards me, so Bella wouldn't hear what he was about to say, "If you ever hurt my daughter, I will hunt you down and skin you alive."

I definitely did not want to be on Charlie's bad side. "I can promise you, Sir, that I have no intentions of ever hurting Bella."

"I'm glad we have an understanding." He said, patting my shoulder.

I was hesitant to ask, but I did it anyway, "Would it be alright if Bella and I still went ice skating?"

Renée chimed in, "I don't see why that would be a problem."

"Have fun, you two!" Esme called after us.

Bella and I practically ran outside of the lounge. "For a minute, I thought they knew about our sleeping arrangements."

"If your father ever found out about that, I don't think I would live much longer."

"I don't think Charlie would ever do that. Yeah, he's a little overprotective, but I think that comes from his job. He would never hurt you."

"You didn't hear what he had to say to me. He told me that if I ever hurt you, which I have no intention of doing, he would 'hunt me down and skin me alive'. I just don't want to be on his bad side for fear of my life."

Bella laughed, "Relax, Romeo. Let's just get to Studio B so we can go ice skating."

"Uh, Bella?"

"What's up?"

"Unless you don't mind, possibly, getting your legs all scratched up, I suggest we go up to the room and change into some pants and long sleeved shirts."

She looked down at what she was wearing. "I didn't even think about that. I, definitely, do not want to injure myself more than is probably going to happen."

With that, we ran back up the stairs to the room and changed really quickly. As we were running out the door, I grabbed my hoodie, just in case. We ran back down the seven decks and finally made it to Studio B. We rented the skates and found a seat so it would be easier to put them on.

Bella seemed nervous. "Remember that you promised that you wouldn't let me go."

"How could I forget? I promise that I will not let go of you until you ask me to."

She still seemed a little bit apprehensive, but she seemed to relax some. I noticed that she was rubbing her hands up and down her arms. I grabbed my hoodie and offered it to her, "Here, take this. I think you might need it more than I will.

She grabbed it and threw it on. "Thanks." I couldn't help but think how natural and good Bella looked in my clothes. I didn't want to be caught staring, so I turned away.

"Anytime." I don't know if my eyes were playing tricks on me, but I thought I saw her pull the jacket up to her nose and inhale.

I smiled, "Shall we?" I stood up and held my hand out for her to take.

She grabbed my hand and I pulled her up, "I guess it's now or never."

I led her out to the ice and stepped out before I turned around and grabbed both of her hands. She hesitantly stepped out onto the ice and, almost immediately, started to go down. My grip on her tightened and I held her up until she was able to regain her balance.

She breathed a sigh of relief, "That was close."

"I told you I wasn't going to let you fall. Are you ready to start moving now?"

"I guess."

I started skating backwards, leading Bella. "Showoff." She muttered.

"What?"

"Must you be good at everything you do? How can you skate backwards? I can barely go forward."

"My family and I enjoy skating. It's one of the many things we do together. I'm sure that, one day, you'll be able to skate backwards and, maybe, even do a few tricks."

She rolled her eyes, "I doubt that'll ever happen."

"Have a little faith, Bella."

We began moving a little faster as Bella seemed to get more comfortable. I was so focused on Bella and making sure that she didn't fall that I had just noticed there was music playing in the background. As soon as the next song started, I saw Bella's face light up.

_I just wanna be alone tonight  
I just wanna take a little breather  
Cause lately all we do is fight  
And every time it cuts me deeper_

Cause something's changed  
You've been acting so strange  
And its taking its toll on me  
Its safe to say that I'm ready to let you leave

Without you, I live it up a little more everyday  
Without you, I'm seein' myself so differently  
I didn't wanna believe it then  
But it all worked out in the end  
When I watched you walk away  
Well I never thought I'd say  
I'm fine  
Without you

"I'm taking a wild guess here, but I think you like this song."

"How could you tell?"

"When it started, your face lit up and you relaxed enough to have me let go of one of your hands."

She looked down and realized that I had, in fact, dropped one of her hands. The smile on her face went from ear to ear.

_Called you up cause' it's been long enough  
And you said that you were so much better  
We have done a lot of growing up  
We were never meant to be together_

Cause something changed, you were acting so strange  
And it's taken its toll on me  
It's safe to say that I'm ready to let you leave

Without you, I live it up a little more everyday  
Without you, I'm seein' myself so differently  
I didn't wanna believe it then  
But it all worked out in the end  
When I watched you walk away  
Well I never thought I'd say  
I'm fine  
Without you

I moved so that I was now standing next to Bella instead of in front of her. She relaxed even more and started to become more fluid in her motions.

"I really do like this song. It's definitely up there in my top ten."

"May I ask why you like it so much?"

"I don't know. The meaning of it is kind of a downer, but it's also a good message. If things aren't really working out, or the other person is a bad influence, and you realize that you can be fine without them, it might be worth it to let them go."

"I hope that you don't think that way about me."

She smiled and my breath hitched, "No, I don't think that about you."

"Good." Now that Bella and I were friends, I was hoping that it would stay that way, even after this cruise ended.

_Cause something changed, you were acting so strange  
And it's taken its toll on me  
It's safe to say that I'm ready to let you leave_

Without you, I live it up a little more everyday  
Without you, I'm seein' myself so differently  
I didn't wanna believe it then  
But it all worked out in the end  
When I watched you walk away  
Well I never thought I'd say  
I'm fine,  
Without you  
Without you  
Without you  
Without you  
I just wanna be alone tonight,  
I just wanna take a little breather.

**BPOV**

After our little talk, Edward and I kept skating. He kept his word and didn't let me fall once, for which I was grateful for. I tried skating on my own, but that didn't blow over too well. I fell three times before I gave up and held onto Edward's hand the rest of the time.

At 12:15, there was an announcement made saying that we needed to clear off the ice. We made our way over to the gate and were back on non-slippery ground. We returned our skates and left the studio. I left his hoodie on. It smelled amazing and I couldn't get enough of it. When I thought he wasn't looking, I would take a big whiff of the intoxicating smell.

"What's next on your list, Romeo?" Just then, my stomach growled loudly and I blushed.

He chuckled, "I think someone's a little hungry."

"I don't know what's wrong with me. Ever since I've been on this cruise, I'm always hungry."

"I think it's just part of the cruising experience. They have food available 24/7, and it's free, so there really are no limits when it comes down to it. So, what do you feel like eating?"

"I saw on the diagram of the ship that there's a Johnny Rocket's onboard. Can we go there?"

"That's fine by me." Edward didn't grab my hand and, at first, I didn't understand why. Then I figured that Charlie's words were still stuck in his head. I guess I can't blame him. I had to stop myself from reaching out and grabbing his hand myself.

We made it up to Johnny Rocket's on Deck 12. In all honesty, I had never been to one before, but I had always wanted to. It was decorated like a 50's style diner with the red booths and white tables. There were even little working juke boxes on each of the tables.

One of the waitresses, from Poland, led us to a booth and we took our seats. I decided to order the Rocket Single with fries and a chocolate milkshake and Edward ordered the same.

Edward was flipping through the little juke box and found something he liked. He put the nickel in the machine and selected the song.

_Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh,  
Black and orange stray cat sittin' on a fence  
Ain't got enough dough to pay the rent  
I'm flat broke but I don't care  
I strut right by with my tail in the air_

Stray cat strut, I'm a ladies' cat,  
A feline Casanova, hey man, that's where it's at  
Get a shoe thrown at me from a mean old man  
Get my dinner from a garbage can

Yeah don't cross my path

I had been thinking, and I figured it was time for me to let Edward off the hook. "So, I was thinking earlier today."

"About?"

"About me forgiving you. You've showed me that you really aren't a class A asshole."

He laughed, "Thank you, it really means a lot to me that you would trust me." _I would trust you with my life._

_I don't bother chasing mice around  
I slink down the alley looking for a fight  
Howling to the moonlight on a hot summer night  
Singin' the blues while the lady cats cry,  
"Wild stray cat, you're a real gone guy."_

I wish I could be as carefree and wild,  
but I got cat class and I got cat style.

Edward and I were intensely staring at each other now. Normally, I would have blushed and looked away the second I realized he was looking at me, but not this time; I couldn't even tear my eyes away from him and his dazzling green eyes. He seemed to be looking at me in the same way, but I couldn't figure out why. It's not like he could like me as more than a friend or anything. I was just so plain and boring and Edward could have any girl he wanted.

"Here we go." The waitress had come back with our drinks and food and broke us from our own little world.

"Thank you," we both said at the same time, making me giggle.

_I don't bother chasing mice around  
I slink down the alley looking for a fight  
Howling to the moon on a hot summer night  
Singin' the blues while the lady cats cry,  
"Wild stray cat, you're a real gone guy."_

I wish I could be as carefree and wild,  
but I got cat class and I got cat style.

Edward looked up from his food, "Tonight's the Captain's Welcome Aboard Reception and I was wondering if you would like to go with me."

"Are you sure you aren't sick of me yet? I've practically taken up your whole day and I don't want you to feel like we have to spend every minute together."

"I am, most definitely, not sick of you. How could I be? I really enjoy spending time with you. It's a nice change of pace from my family." I had my hand on the table and he reached for it. I blushed, naturally, but didn't pull my hand away.

"If you're sure, I would love to go with you."

He smiled that damned crooked smile and my heartbeat, once again, picked up. "Good, it would be boring if you weren't with me. You always cease to amaze me."

I paid for our lunches, repaying Edward for the bingo incident, and went down to the pool area.

We were walking by the stage and there was some kind of contest going on. I didn't pay attention until Edward stopped walking, his jaw on the floor. I looked up and began laughing hysterically, tears rolling down my face, Edward soon joining me.

Emmett was up onstage in nothing but a Speedo. Apparently, he was entered in the Mr. Sexy Legs Contest. He was posing, so his legs were being shown off. He looked like he thought he was hot shit. It was the funniest thing I had ever seen. I looked around and found Rose looking mortified at the sight of her boyfriend up onstage. That is until she heard some girls commenting on how hot they thought Emmett was. I saw her walk over to them and, I'm guessing, telling them to lay off of Emmett. They walked away after the confrontation.

I made my way over to Rose, Edward following close behind. "Hey, Rose. What is he doing up there?"

"I have no idea. I begged him not to do it, but he insisted that he could win."

"What's up with the Speedo?"

"That was, again, his idea. It was only required to wear shorts but he told me that he would have a better chance of winning if he wore it."

Edward still hadn't stopped laughing, his face now red from lack of oxygen. Alice and Jasper had found us and, much like Edward, Jasper had tears in his eyes from laughing so hard. Alice didn't need the situation to be explained.

I heard a gasp behind me and turned. Esme and Carlisle were there, Esme's jaw on the floor much like Edward's was. They ran over to us.

Rose spoke before they asked, "I told him not to do it." She shook her head.

Esme was speechless, but a grin was slowly appearing on her face.

Carlisle spoke, "Leave it to Emmett."

The rest of the contestants finished their poses and then the announcer, who was from Kenya, moved to the center of the stage. "All right, that was the last of the contestants. Voting will be determined by the loudest screams from the crowd. The announcer pointed to the first six contestants, in turn. The number three contestant had the loudest screams so far. "And contestant number seven." I think I went deaf. The loudest screaming I had ever heard erupted around me. Clearly, Emmett had the contest in the bag and he knew it. The last three contestants were voted for, but none came close to the screams Emmett received.

"And the winner is contestant number 7, by a landslide!" He handed Emmett a trophy with a pair of legs at the top.

Emmett bounded down the stairs booming, "I told you the Speedo would work. You know, chicks dig me because I rarely wear underwear and when I do it's usually something unusual." The biggest grin I had ever seen appeared on his face and I don't think it would leave until later tonight.

Rose slapped him upside the head, "I'm right here. I don't want to hear about other girls. But yes, you did say the Speedo would work." Rosalie kissed him on the lips before he wrapped her up in his massive arms.

This cruise was already shaping up to be the best vacation I have ever been on.

**A/N: Thanks for reading, we hoped you enjoyed it. The songs in this chapter were "Without You" by Hinder and "Stray Cat Strut" by Stray Cats. Johnny Rockets is more fun than a barrel of monkeys, I swear. Our first time going to one really was on the cruise. You can't go there and not play with the juke box. So much fun!! Please read and review. Thanks again! ****Näkemiin!!**


	8. A Time For Love

Ch. 8: A Time For Love

**Disclaimer: We do not own anything except the story line…and Rob, and Kellan, and Taylor, and Cam, and we'll stop there.**

**A/N: Aloha my moloi`eheme. (Couldn't find how to say my). We are so sorry for the delay in updating, term papers needed to be written and books needed to be read. Okay, so we had this ready on Saturday, but, for some reason, fanfiction won't let us update. A big thank you for all the story alerts, favorite story, author alerts, and reviews. Special thanks to canibeyourmemory and lauren loves spunky for reviewing most often. The quote from last chapter was "Chicks dig me because I rarely wear underwear and when I do it's usually something unusual.****" From Stripes. Highly recommend that movie, very funny. Our cousin knows the entire choreography for the graduation scene, so funny to watch! If something seems a little off in this chapter, blame the cold medicine that JillMH is on. **

**EPOV**

After Emmett's Mr. Sexy Legs victory, he and Rose took off back to their room to do God knows what. I'm just glad that Bella and I are the farthest from their room. Alice had decided that she and Jasper were going to go to the Discover Diamond and Gemstone Seminar at 3:30. _He is so whipped. _Esme and Renée were going to a Scrapbook Workshop at 2:00 and Carlisle and Charlie entered a Blackjack tournament.

Bella had finally calmed down from her fit of laughter at Emmett standing in front of her in a Speedo. "What's next, Romeo?"

"I chose the last activity and I think it's only fair if you choose next." I handed her the Cruise Compass and she looked through it. I watched her face in awe. Her brow was furrowed in concentration and she was unconsciously biting her bottom lip.

She pulled me out of my reverie, "_21 _is playing at 2:30. I kind of want to see that. Is that ok with you?"

"That sounds perfect. Where do we have to go?"

She looked back down at the paper. "Deck 2. I think it would be best if we went now before it gets too crowded." She stood up and I followed her.

We walked down nine decks to the Screening Room and sat in the back of the theater. There weren't too many people in there when we got there. "I'll be right back." She nodded and I got up to go to the concession stand. The guy was from Ireland, "What can I get for you today?"

"A small popcorn and a medium drink." I paid for the snacks and made my way back to Bella.

"Edward, why do you insist on buying everything? If you had told me you were going to get snacks, I would've given you money."

"Bella, how many times do I have to tell you that it's not a big deal? Humor me."

She crossed her arms and huffed, "Fine."

The movie started shortly after. Bella and I were both engrossed in the film. I reached into the bag of popcorn and accidentally grabbed her hand, feeling an electric shock. I dropped it immediately and looked over at her. She was still looking at the screen, but I thought I saw a faint hint of a blush on her cheeks.

Two hours later, _21 _ended. I stood up and stretched, Bella doing the same. She yawned. "Tired?"

"Yeah, I think I'm going to go take a nap." We started walking back up the stairs.

When we reached Deck 10, I said, "I'm going to try to find Jasper and Emmett. I'll see you later. Don't forget you promised that you would go to the Welcome Aboard Reception with me."

"I'll be up before then. No worries."

"Sweet dreams, Bella."

"Thanks." She smiled and it took my breath away.

I turned and continued up the stairs. I figured Jazz and Emmett would be at the Sports Court. Sure enough, when I got there, they were in the middle of a game of basketball.

"What's up, Eddie?"

I groaned and narrowed my eyes at Emmett, "How many times have I told you not to call me that?"

"I don't know. I lost count after ten."

"Where were you?" Jasper asked.

"With Bella. We went to see _21_." I shrugged.

He raised his eyebrows, "Ah, your lady friend."

Emmett stopped and grinned, "Bella's your lady friend? Way to go, Eddie!"

I pinched the bridge of my nose with my thumb and index finger, "She's just a friend. We haven't done anything like that." _Yet, _I added on in my head. I had been feeling something stronger than just friendship towards Bella, but I didn't want to freak her out by telling her. Now that I had Bella in my life, I didn't want to forget her.

When I was with Tanya, I never felt the things I felt when I was with Bella. Bella made my breath catch in my throat by showing me her dazzling smile and there was no doubting the electric current coursing through my body when I held her hand.

"Hello, anybody in there?" Jasper was waving his hand in front of my face, trying to get my attention.

"Sorry."

"It's about time. You've been standing there with a shit eating grin on your face for five minutes. What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing of importance." Little did they know that Bella had invaded my thoughts. I thought it would be best if they didn't know how I felt about Bella.

"You've got it bad, Eddie."

I tried to deny it, "What?"

"Don't play stupid with me. I haven't seen you so happy in a long time and I am willing to bet anything that it has something to do with your lady friend." Jasper smirked, knowing he was right.

I wasn't about to give him the satisfaction, "I told you, Bella and I are just friends." I had to get out of there quick before they called me on my bluff. "I'm going to go back to my room." I turned and made my way back to our room. _When had it become our room?_ I pushed that thought to the back of my mind.

I opened the door quietly, not knowing if Bella was asleep yet. I crept into the room and stopped at the sight before me. Bella was lying on the bed, her mahogany hair fanned around her face, hugging a pillow tightly to her chest. She looked so peaceful, almost like an angel.

She stirred and started mumbling. I thought I had woken her when I heard her speak, "Edward." My eyes grew wide. I breathed a sigh of relief when she turned and her eyes were still closed. _Was Bella dreaming about me? _

I decided to let her sleep in peace. I quietly walked out of the room and went to Carlisle and Esme's room. As I was just about to knock, the door opened, revealing Esme. "Hello, Edward. I was just about to leave."

"Hi, Mom. I was wondering if I could stay in here for a little bit." She looked at me, a little skeptical. "I haven't played the piano in a while and I miss it."

"Oh, of course, Dear. Just don't forget about the reception tonight. I know how caught up you get when you play."

How could I forget about the reception? Being there meant spending even more time with Bella. "I won't. I'll be ready in time. Have fun."

"You, too. I will see you tonight, Sweetie." She kissed my cheek.

I sat down at the piano bench and began playing a familiar tune; Esme's favorite. As I was playing, Bella entered my thoughts, once again; her smile, the way her brow furrowed when she was concentrating, and the way the electricity coursed through my body when we held hands. Once Esme's song was finished, my fingers drifted over the keys, creating a complex melody. There was no doubt who had inspired this new composition. The melody was started out tense and harsh, reflecting our first meeting in the airport. Slowly but surely, the composition turned soft and sweet, just like our new found friendship. The notes drifted off and I sat there, lost in my thoughts.

How could Bella affect me so much? We had only known each other for a total of three days and, yet, I already felt more connected to her than anyone else in my family, even Alice.

I sighed and, once again, got lost in the complex workings of my new composition.

**BPOV**

_We were sitting on the beach, warm sand beneath us and crystal blue wasters in front us. I was looking into the depths of his emerald eyes and he was staring back into my own chocolate ones. Our lips were just millimeters from each other._

_**Knock, knock, knock. **_

My eyes snapped open, and I sat up in bed. I looked at the clock and noticed it was 5:30. I was still holding on to Edward's pillow. I couldn't get to sleep right away and I knew that Edward's presence always had a calming effect on me, so I stole his pillow, inhaling his glorious scent. _Note to self: do not fall asleep with anything that smells like Edward unless you want to be disappointed._

I rolled out of bed and quietly made my way to the door. I didn't know if it was my parents or if it was Edward's parents. The last thing I wanted was for Charlie and Renée, and Carlisle and Esme, for that matter, to find out that Edward and I had ended up in the same room. I stepped onto my tip toes and looked out the peep hole. I saw a head of spiky black hair and sighed in relief.

I unlocked the door and Alice looked surprised to see me, "Oh, hi, Bella. Where's Edward? I thought this was his room. I was just making sure he was getting ready for the reception tonight."

I was already exhausted again, just listening to her. She had said everything in one breath and was about to keep going. I grabbed her arm and yanked her into the room before anybody else noticed her. "Okay Alice, I have to tell you something, but you have to promise me that you won't tell a soul, not even Jasper."

"Oh my God, Bella! You had sex with my brother! I'm going to kill him!"

My eyes grew wide and my jaw hit the floor, "WHAT?! Alice, calm down. I did not sleep with Edward."

"Oh, you didn't?"

I shook my head.

"Well then, what are you doing in his room?"

"That's what I was trying to tell you before I was so rudely interrupted." I jokingly glared at her.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. Carry on."

"It's ok. Anyway, Edward and I ended up in the same room. We tried seeing if there was another room that one of us could have, but there wasn't anything open, so we're stuck together." I shrugged.

"Do you guys sleep in the same bed? Imagine if Charlie found out. Emmett told me about the bingo incident. Your dad would, surely, murder Edward if he found out."

"Relax, Alice. Last night, I slept on the bed and he slept on the couch. I did feel bad about it though. That couch may be comfortable, but it's definitely not suitable for a good night's sleep. I kept trying to get him to take the bed, but he's so stubborn and insisted that I have it."

"Yeah, that does sound like my brother; always the masochist." She chuckled.

"Tell me about it."

"So if he's not in here, do you know where he is?"

"No, I've been asleep, so I have no idea where he could be."

"Oh well." Suddenly, Alice's eyes lit up and she had a devious smirk on her face. She ran to the closet and began rifling through my clothes until she found what she wanted. She came barreling out of the closet, grabbing my hand and pulling me towards the door. "Come on, Bella. I don't have all day."

"Where, exactly, are we going?"

"To my room. I have all the necessary tools to make you look stunning tonight."

I dug my heels into the ground when I realized what she had planned, "No, Alice. I do not want to do this."

She kept pulling me along, even when I tried with all my might to resist her. I never realized how strong she was for such a tiny person, "No complaining. You're going to do this, whether you like it or not. Just trust me."

I finally relented, "Fine, but I can promise you that I will not enjoy one minute of this."

She stuck her key into the slot of the door next to mine and Edward's. Rosalie was already in there getting ready, "Hey, Bella."

"Hi, Rose."

"Rose, you and I are going to help Bella get ready for tonight. I brought her dress over. Could you start on her hair while I do her makeup?"

"Sure." She noticed I was hesitant, "Don't worry about anything. We promise that you will love it when we're done."

I smiled as Alice pushed me to the seat near the vanity and turned me around so my back was to the mirror. "No peeking." I sighed and let them work their magic.

An hour later, I stopped feeling the poking and prodding I had been feeling. "Here." Alice threw the dress at me and shoved me towards the bathroom.

"Is she always so pushy?"

Rose laughed, "Only when it comes to things like this."

I shut the bathroom door, not even looking in the mirror. I pulled out the dress. It was royal blue with a deep v-neck and straps that crossed in an x in the back. There was bead work on the straps and below the bust. Renée had gotten me the dress a few months ago, but I never knew where I would ever wear it. It was clear that the dress was for this cruise.

I took a few deep breaths before I stepped out to face Rose and Alice. As they saw me, they both gasped. "Oh my god." They said, in unison.

I blushed, "Is it really that bad?"

I was about to turn around and go back into the bathroom, but I felt Alice pull my arm. "Bella, are you out of your mind? You look astonishing."

"Really?"

"Come here." They pulled me in front of the mirror. I gasped as I saw the girl reflected back at me. Her long hair fell in soft waves down her back. Her makeup was subtle, yet eye catching. I couldn't believe that this was me.

I turned back around to face them, "Thank you guys, so much." I felt the tears start to prickle in my eyes. I reached out to hug them both.

"No crying or you're going to ruin your makeup." Of course Alice would be worried about my makeup. Quickly, I wiped the tears from my eyes.

"Trust us. That dress is amazing on you. Here, put these on." Rose held out a pair of silver heels.

"I don't think so. I am not wearing those death traps. I already have a hard time walking in flat shoes. Can you imagine the predicaments I could get into wearing shoes like that?"

"Bella, Edward won't let you fall. He cares too much about you."

"How did you know I was going with Edward?"

"I just always seem to know these things. It's a gift." Alice was flattering herself and I couldn't help but laugh.

After I got over my shock, Alice and Rose finished getting ready.

An hour later, there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it!" Alice yelled.

She opened the door and Emmett, Jasper, and Edward stood in the doorway. Alice jumped into Jasper's arms and he effortlessly caught her like they had rehearsed that move many times before. Rose went to Emmett and kissed him passionately.

I was looking at Edward, waiting for him to notice me. He had his head down and was fiddling with the sleeves of his dinner jacket. When he finally looked up and met my eyes, he gasped and, noticeably, swallowed hard.

He, slowly, walked over to me and took my hands in his. "Bella, you look. . . words cannot even describe how beautiful you look." I looked down and blushed in embarrassment. He kissed my cheek and, after his lips left my skin, I still felt the fire from them.

"Thank you." I managed to squeak out.

We were pulled out of our own little bubble by a screaming Alice holding out a tie for Emmett to take, "Emmett, what are you wearing?"

"Alice, I just don't think it's the right style."

"Style? You want to talk to me about style, you can't even dress yourself. Look at that bow tie."

"Don't be talking about my bow tie."

The next thing I know, Alice had jumped on Emmett's back, ripping the bow tie off his neck, replacing it with the tie she had in her hands. "There."

Jasper was laughing, "I told you she wouldn't approve. If you had just listened to me, you wouldn't have had to go through that."

Emmett did not look the least bit happy, "Shut up." He muttered.

Edward and I just laughed at the lengths Alice would go to, to make sure no one walked out of the room looking less than "perfect".

"Alright, let's head down to the lounge." Alice was happy, now that Emmett was taken care of.

We walked down to Deck 5 to the Ixtapa Lounge for the reception. We found another booth and took a seat, waiting for Charlie, Renée, Carlisle, and Esme to meet us. Edward and I sat on the smaller bench again, everyone else behind us. We ordered our drinks when the waiter came over. Five minutes later, our parents walked in. Edward smiled at Charlie, I'm guessing to try to get back on his good side. I gave Charlie a warning look. He caught it and nodded towards Edward.

"How was everyone's day?" Carlisle asked.

Edward smirked at me and answered, "Pleasant."

The waiters came around with the hors d'oeuvres. Emmett tried grabbing more than what he was supposed to, but Esme smacked his hand away. I had to chuckle at that.

Edward looked curiously at me, "What?"

"Emmett."

That was explanation enough, "Oh."

The captain came on the stage and introduced the head crew members of the ship. After the introductions were made, the guests were allowed to go up on stage and dance. Edward looked at me, "Come on, let's dance."

I sighed, but gave in easily knowing he would persuade me anyway.

He grabbed my hand and led me to the stage, everyone else in our group following.

_A time for summer skies  
For hummingbirds and butterflies  
For tender words that harmonize with love_

A time for climbing hills  
For leaning out of windowsills  
Admiring the daffodils above

A time for holding hands together  
A time for rainbow colored weather  
A time of make believe that we've been dreaming of

"I think Charlie's finally getting a little used to you."

"I'd hope so. I just hope that we keep in touch when this is all over."

I couldn't believe he wanted to keep talking to me after the fact. I smiled, "I'd like that."

_As time goes drifting by  
The willow bends and so do I  
But all my friends whatever skies above  
I've known a time for spring  
A time for fall  
But best of all  
A time for love_

A time for holding hands together  
A time for rainbow colored weather  
A time of make believe that we've been dreaming of

_As time goes drifting by  
The willow bends and so do I  
But all my friends whatever skies above  
I know a time for spring  
A time for fall  
But best of all  
A time for love_

I looked up and met Edward's green eyes. We stared at each other as the song came to a close. I was beginning to become uncomfortable being on stage, "Can we go sit down and talk?"

"Of course." He didn't let go of my hand as he led me back to the booth. Everyone else stayed on stage dancing, so we would have a chance to talk.

We talked for a little bit before everyone else came back over before leaving for dinner

We made our way back to the same table as last night, but we had a different seating arrangement. Carlisle and Esme sat next to Charlie and Renée at one end of the table, while the rest of us sat at the other end. Edward sat at the other head of the table and I was on his right. During dinner, Edward had grabbed my hand under the table and kept rubbing circles on the back of my hand. I looked up at him and gave him a smile.

After dinner, Carlisle, Esme, Charlie, and Renée decided they were going to gamble for a little bit before retiring for the night. Edward and I decided to turn in early. We got back to our room and I took my shower. When I got out of the shower, Edward was in his pajamas, sitting on the couch reading a book.

"What are you reading?"

He held up my book, "Wuthering Heights."

I made my way over to the bed and sat against the headboard under the covers, "And how do you like it?"

"I never really understood Cathy and Heathcliff's relationship." He set the book aside and slid under the covers on the couch.

"It's definitely my favorite book."

"I can tell by the damaged spine."

I smiled, "I can't help it if I can't get enough of that book." I lay down and looked up at the ceiling.

"Good night, Bella." That was the last thing I heard before I fell into a restful night of sleep.

**A/N: Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it. The song in this chapter was "A Time For Love" by Jamie Cullum (I really just typed Cullen for his last name, no lie. Haha.) The link for Bella's dress will be on our profiles, it's so cute! We just found out that two chapters from Wide Awake, our favorite story here, have just been removed and AngstGodess' account has been suspended. Show her your support please. Reviews are welcomed and much appreciated! Aloha! We are so sor….just kidding! **


	9. Untouched

Ch. 9: Untouched

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight, Stephenie Meyer does. We don't own Royal Caribbean either. Can we own the boys of Twilight?**

**A/N: Bom dia ****meu amigos! Portuguese!! Sorry for the very late update, term papers, presentations, tests and illness all happened last week. The quote from last chapter was the scene where Alice and Emmett are arguing over the tie vs. the bow tie from School of Rock. We went to Disneyland two weeks ago and quoted it the entire time we were there. Needless to say we got many stares. JillMH is done with classes until the 30****th**** so we should be able to update more often. Thanks to canibeyourmemory for yet another awesome review. And thanks for the other reviews, story alerts, author alerts, favorite stories, and favorite authors, it really means a lot to us. **

**EPOV**

I groaned and rolled over. Not the best idea when you're sleeping on a couch. I fell to the floor with a loud thud, hoping I didn't wake Bella up. I shot up and looked towards the bed. Bella was still asleep and she looked so beautiful. She was sprawled out on the bed with her hair splayed out all around her. She looked so peaceful and I was thankful that my little fall didn't wake her up.

I decided to take a shower before breakfast. The hot water pounding on my back felt good on my sore muscles. A couch is definitely not meant for getting a good night's sleep. Once the hot water ran out, I stepped out of the shower and changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt.

Bella was still asleep, but she was now curled in a ball on one side of the bed. I still couldn't get over how beautiful she looked when sleeping. Although, she looked beautiful at anytime, to me. I made my way over to the bed and knelt down. I began softly stroking Bella's hair, a small sigh of contentment escaping her lips. "Bella, Love." I whispered. _Where did the 'love' come from? _I pushed that thought out of my mind and continued to run my fingers through her silky hair. "Bella." I softly called again.

"Five more minutes." She mumbled. I couldn't help but laugh at that. Her lids finally fluttered open revealing depthless brown eyes.

"Good morning."

"That it is. You don't know how good that feels." Her eyes closed again and I, reluctantly, pulled my hand away. She frowned, "Don't stop."

I chuckled again, "I have to if you're just going to fall asleep when I do that."

"Fine, I'll get up. What time is it?" She searched for the clock.

"It's 9. We don't get to San Juan until 2, so we have a few hours to kill."

"And you felt the need to wake me up, why?"

I stuttered, "Um, well, I-I thought we could get breakfast, but if you don't want to, I'll just head down to the concierge lounge and get something." I stood up and turned around, intending to leave her be. I'm sure she's getting sick of spending all her time with me.

I felt her hand on my wrist, sending a jolt of electricity coursing through my body, "I'm just kidding. I'd love to get breakfast with you." She started laughing hysterically.

"If you don't want to, don't feel obligated to come with me." I tried pulling away, but her grip just tightened.

"Hold up, Romeo. I really do want to go with you. I just wanted to see what your reaction would be if I made you believe I didn't want to go. It was well worth it."

Two can play at that game. "I really didn't want you to come with me, I was just being courteous." I tore my hand away from her grasp and walked to the door. 3…2…1, cue Bella.

I heard the bed shift when she got up and started walking towards me, "Wait. Edward I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you mad, but I understand if you don't want me with you all the time." She was insane. She thought I didn't like spending time with her. How wrong she was.

I started laughing and turned around to find her a shocked expression on her face. "'I'm just kidding. I just wanted to see what your reaction would be.'" I threw her words back at her.

She was livid, "You are so bad Edward Cullen!" She crossed her arms and went out to the deck.

Now I felt bad. I followed her out to the deck and took the seat next to her. "Bella, I'm really sorry." I looked over and was horrified to find tears streaming down her cheeks. _What have I done?_ I'm such an ass. I quickly jumped up and knelt in front of her. She turned her head, avoiding eye contact with me. "Hey," I said softly. "Bella, please look at me." She made no move to turn her head. I gently pulled her head to look at me. I brushed the tears away with my thumbs. It killed me to see her so hurt, knowing that I was the cause of it. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

Her voice was shaky when she spoke, the tears never ceasing, "If you didn't want to spend time with me, why didn't you say so?"

I really fucked up, "Bella, I love spending time with you. It killed me to be away from you yesterday, when Alice kidnapped you." That earned me a small smile. "I was jittery, I couldn't focus, and I didn't feel complete. When I'm with you, I feel whole and endlessly happy. I can't explain it, but you have made such an impact on my life in three short days. I really care about you."

She was silent for a while, taking calming breaths in an effort to stop the tears. "Really?"

"Absolutely. I can't imagine my life without you in it, even as just a friend." I took a chance, "Do you forgive me? I understand if you don't. I really fucked up and I really don't deserve your forgiveness."

"I'll forgive you on one condition."

"And what would that condition be?"

"You have to be honest with me. Tell me what you're really thinking and feeling. If we're going to be friends, our relationship can't be based on lies."

"Deal. Friends?"

I stuck my hand out and she took it, sealing our deal. "Friends."

"Thank you, Bella." I stood up and pulled her with me, enveloping her in a strong embrace. She hugged me back with equal strength. I kissed the top of her head, thanking whatever God there was for bringing Bella into my life. As I told her, I can't imagine my life without her in it. But, I was wondering if we would just stay friends, or if our friendship might develop into something more.

I sat back down in one of the chairs, pulling her with me to sit on my lap. I ran my fingers through her hair again to try to get her to calm down and stop the tears. She clung to my shirt as if her life depended on it. It was the most natural thing for us.

I don't know how long we stayed like that but, eventually, hunger took over. Bella's stomach growled. I laughed, "It sounds like someone is hungry."

She pressed her face tighter to my chest. "Maybe." She mumbled.

I pushed her away a little to get a look at her face and, sure enough, the infamous blush was gracing her face. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about, Love." I lightly ran my fingers across her cheek and she looked down. I stood up, cradling her in my arms.

She screamed, "Edward, put me down. I have two legs for a reason."

"I am well aware, but I really don't want you tripping over nothing. You're much safer right here."

She crossed her arms in front of her chest, "Suit yourself but, I'm not going to stop Charlie if he finds us and decides to shoot you."

_Shit! _Bella nearly fell on her ass I dropped her so fast. "I forgot that small detail."

She started laughing, "You should've seen the look on your face. I knew that would knock some sense into you." She grabbed some clothes and stepped into the bathroom to change.

"After that look Charlie gave me at bingo, I wouldn't put it past him to shoot me if he found us in a compromising position."

Bella emerged, looking as beautiful as ever in shorts and a tank top. "Come on, Romeo. I thought you were going to take me to breakfast, not sit around all day worrying about getting shot by Charlie."

I snapped out of my stupor and followed her to the door. After opening the door, I checked down both sides of the hallway to make sure that none of our family members were wandering around. Once I determined that the coast was clear, I took Bella's hand and led her out of the room.

"I was thinking that we could go to the Windjammer Café for breakfast this morning. Something a little more casual."

"That sounds good to me. I'd rather go casual than formal any day." She smiled up at me and, once again, my breath hitched in my throat.

**BPOV**

We found a table after filling our plates and conversation flowed easily between the two of us.

"So, you said that we don't reach port until 2, right?" I asked

"Spot on my dear Watson. Do you know what excursion Renée and Charlie have planned?"

"Um, I think they said something about a rainforest. They booked it the first day on the ship."

"Do you mean the El Yunque Rain Forest?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

"What a coincidence, that's what Carlisle and Esme planned. We booked our excursions online a few weeks ago."

"Something tells me that your parents influenced my parents."

"I think you might be right. They all act like they've known each other for years."

"That they do. I think they will keep in touch once this vacation is over." I really didn't want to think about this ending and, possibly, losing some good friendships.

Edward must've noticed my, suddenly, solemn expression. "What's wrong, Love?"

There it is again: _Love_. I don't know why he started calling me that, but I sure wasn't going to complain. "Nothing."

"You're lying. What happened to telling each other the truth?"

_Damn it._ "Fine, I was just thinking about what's going to happen when this is over."

"We still have four days until we have to worry about that. On to a lighter topic, did you notice the way Alice was looking at us last night at dinner? I think she might be catching on."

"Yeah, about that. Alice knows."

Edward looked curious and nervous at the same time, "What exactly does she know?"

"She knows that we were put in the same room."

His eyes went wide, "What?! How did she find out? She always seems to know everything. Damn pixie."

"Edward, relax. Yesterday, she came to the room looking for you to make sure that you were getting ready for dinner. I forgot to see who it was before I opened the door. She thought she had the wrong room, but I told her that we had been put in the same room. Do you know what her first thought was?"

"Oh God, what was it?"

"She thought we had sex together."

Shock and confusion ran across Edward's face before settling on anger. "Why would she think that? She knows that I have never done anything like that, even with Tanya."

I didn't mean to pry, but I was honestly curious, "Who's Tanya?"

"She's nobody." I must have hit a nerve because Edward suddenly seemed really tense.

I reached out and grabbed his hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "You don't have to tell me, but just know that I'm here if you ever want to talk."

He gave me a small smile but, it wasn't right. It didn't reach his eyes. "Thank you."

"Anytime."

"I'm sorry for freaking out. Anyway, what did you tell Alice?"

"Don't worry about it. It's better to let your emotions out than keep them bottled up inside. I told her that we didn't do anything of that nature. When I told her that you decided to give me the bed and sleep on the couch, she said it sounded just like you. 'Always the masochist' were her exact words. Speaking of the couch, I want you to have the bed tonight."

"Bella, how many times do I have to tell you, I'm going to make sure you sleep in that damn bed, if it's the last thing I do."

"You are so stubborn."

"Pot, meet kettle. Kettle, pot."

"Haha. So, what do you want to do before we get to San Juan?"

"There isn't much to do since most people aren't going to be on the ship most of the day." Edward pulled out the Cruise Compass and looked at what activities were being offered before we dock. "We could always go ice skating again."

"I'm going to need more than a few hours of recovery if you want me to go ice skating again. We could do that another day. What else is there?"

"There isn't much. The only thing that sounds fun is Cash Prize and Diamond Giveaway Bingo. I can almost guarantee that Esme is going to go to the Interior Decorating Lecture."

_But girls,  
They wanna have fu-un,  
Oh,girls,just wanna have  
That's all they really want.....  
Some fun...._

When the working day is done,  
Oh,girls,  
They wanna have fu-un,  
Oh,girls,  
Just wanna have fun....

Girls,  
They want,  
Wanna have fun.  
Girls,  
Wanna have

"Hi, Alice." At least he didn't seem mad at her.

"I think that's what we were planning on doing."

"All right, we'll see you there."

"Bye."

"Nice ring tone. What did Alice want?"

"Compliments of Alice. There's no need to ponder over what we're going to do with our time. Alice saw that the bingo they're doing today is the cash prize and diamond giveaway. She said that Rose and Emmett are going and said that we better be there or else we have to face the wrath of Alice."

"I don't want to go through that again. One night of being poked and prodded was enough to last me a life time."

"That was tame compared to what she is capable of. Are you ready?"

"Yeah." We left the café and I grabbed his hand. I felt weird to be near him, but not hold his hand. He looked down at me and gave me his crooked smile. I was glad to see that it reached his eyes again.

When we got to the Ixtapa Lounge, we were nearly tackled by a hyper pixie. Alice and the others had already claimed our booth and bought the tickets. It was really frustrating to learn that generosity runs in the Cullen family. Alice, like Edward, told me that I was not going to pay her back for buying my ticket. She had kept her promise and hadn't told anyone about Edward's and my sleeping arrangements.

Alice ended up coming out the big winner of the game. She won a beautiful necklace with diamonds embedded in the heart charm and was proudly flashing it to anyone who would look.

We decided to relax by the pool to kill time before we docked. The band was out there playing again.

_I go ooh ooh, you go ah ah  
Lalalala-ahlalala  
I can't  
La-la-la-la-la-la  
I wanna wanna wanna get get get what I want  
Don't stop  
Gimme gimme gimme what you got got  
'Cause I can't wait wait wait any more more more more more  
Don't even talk about the consequence  
'Cause right now you're the only thing that's making any sense to me  
And I don't give a damn what they say, what they think think  
'Cause you're the only one who's on my mind  
I'll never ever let you leave me  
I'll try to stop time forever, never wanna hear you say goodbye (bye)_

I feel so untouched  
And I want you so much  
That I just can't resist you  
It's not enough to say that I miss you  
I feel so untouched right now  
Need you so much somehow  
I can't forget you  
Been goin' crazy from the moment I met you

I looked over at Edward and he was the epitome of relaxed. He was lying in the chair, his Ray Bans covering his emerald eyes, and his arm slung lazily over them.

_Untouched-un  
And I need you so much_

See you, breathe you, I want to be you  
Alalalala alalalala  
You can take take t-take take take time time  
To live live the way you gotta gotta live your life  
Gimme gimme gimme all of you you  
Don't be scared  
I'll see you through the lonely nights of wanting more a-more more  
Don't even think about what's right or wrong, or wrong or right  
'Cause in the end it's only you and me and no one else is gonna be around  
To answer all the questions left behind  
And you and I are meant to be so even if the world falls down today  
You've still got me to hold you up up  
And I will never let you down (down)

I feel so untouched  
And I want you so much  
That I just can't resist you  
It's not enough to say that I miss you  
I feel so untouched right now  
Need you so much somehow  
I can't forget you  
Been goin' crazy from the moment I met you

I thought back to this morning when Edward had called me 'Love'. Did it mean something more than just a term of endearment? The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I liked Edward as more than a friend.

_Untouched-un, untouched  
Untouched-un  
Alalalala alalalala  
Untouched-un  
Alalalala alalalala_

I feel so untouched  
And I want you so much  
That I just can't resist you  
It's not enough to say that I miss you  
I feel so untouched right now  
Need you so much somehow  
I can't forget you  
Been goin' crazy from the moment I met you

I feel so untouched  
And I want you so much  
That I just can't resist you  
It's not enough to say that I miss you  
I feel so untouched right now  
Need you so much somehow  
I can't forget you  
Been goin' crazy from the moment I met you

Untouched-un  
Untouched  
Untouched-un

Even though Edward and I had our arguments and disagreements, we had always made up. I couldn't help but notice that when we held each other's hands, they were a perfect fit. Holding hands was always natural for us, even when we first met. I wanted Edward and I to be more than just friends.

I loved him.

**A/N: DUN DUN DUNNNNNN!!!!!! There's a little filler chapter for you. The songs in this chapter were "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" by Cyndi Lauper and "Untouched" by The Veronicas (seriously, the best song ever (right now)! The link for the necklace that Alice won will be on our profiles. Thanks for reading! ****Adeus!**


	10. If I Fell

Ch. 10: If I Fell

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean.**

**A/N: Moeo shomis!! (Zulu) Thanks for reading. The quote from last chapter was "My Dear Watson" from Sherlock Holmes. Thank you for the reviews, story alerts, author alerts, favorite authors, and favorite stories. Special thanks to canibeyourmemory, lauren loves spunky, and ****xiloveedwardcullenx for constantly reviewing. **

**BPOV**

Charlie, Renée, Carlisle and Esme found us at the pool around 1:30. Carlisle and Esme had gone to the interior design lecture. Charlie and Renée had explored the ship. And they might've had a few drinks along the way. They all wanted to head down to the gangway on Deck 1 early enough so we wouldn't get stuck in the crowds trying to leave the ship. Edward and I were walking behind everybody else, holding hands. He was hesitant when I first grabbed his hand, but I'm sure it was only because he was afraid of what Charlie might do to him. As soon as we were joined, though, he immediately relaxed.

Once we got down to Deck 1, we had to slide our boarding passes into a slot in a podium to show that we left the ship. There were crew members outside taking pictures by the gangway.

Renée jumped at the opportunity to get, yet, another family picture, "Come on you guys. Like I said on the first day, we are going to take as many pictures as possible." I sighed, but went complied with her request. Who was I to rain on her parade?

Charlie seemed just as enthusiastic as me, but went along with it anyway because he loves Renée.

Esme was just as excited about the pictures as Renée. The two were alike in so many ways, it was scary. She had pulled all of them towards the spot where the pictures were being taken and I couldn't help but notice how beautiful the Cullens looked. Every single one of them was inhumanly beautiful and here I was, as plain as could be, hanging out with them.

Edward came back to me, once he was released from Esme, and must have noticed I wasn't as happy as I had been a minute ago. "What's wrong, Love?" He asked, stroking his long fingers along my cheek.

"I was just thinking. I'll tell you about it later."

"Are you sure you're alright? We don't have to go if you don't want. We could –"

"Edward, I'm fine. I've been looking forward to seeing the rain forest. I just want us to have a good time and not worry about stupid shit."

"If you're sure."

"Positive."

After the conversation between Edward and me, our group found the tour guide who was holding up the sign for the rain forest tour. After the rest of the tour group joined us, our tour guide, Armando, led us to a coach bus. Funny enough, we all ended up being coupled off. Edward led me to a seat that was towards the back of the bus. He slid in first and then pulled me close to him, the argument from this morning completely forgotten. I laid my head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders. Alice and Jasper were in the seats next to us, Rose and Emmett in front of us, Carlisle and Esme in front of Alice and Jasper, and Renée and Charlie in front of Carlisle and Esme.

"Buenos dias! Como estás? How is everybody?" Armando began.

The bus resounded with various greetings.

"Very good. Today we will be driving to the El Yunque Rain Forest and then we will take a small hike through it."

"Oh great," I mumbled.

"What's up?" Edward asked.

"Hiking. If I had known that we were going to be hiking, I might have taken you up on your offer to stay on the ship."

"What's wrong with hiking?"

"In case you haven't noticed, I am the biggest klutz in the world. I trip over nothing sometimes, that's how klutzy I am. I can't even begin to imagine all the things I could trip over in a rain forest. I'm sure there are huge rocks and roots sticking up waiting to ambush me and make me fall down."

Edward laughed and kissed my temple, "I won't let you fall. I promise."

I knew there was a reason why I loved him. If only he reciprocated those feelings, I'd be in good shape. I looked over at Alice and Jasper and noticed that she was now sporting a knowing smirk. She must have seen the little exchange between Edward and I. _Damn pixie. _I'm sure she'll drag me into her lair wanting details. But, there are no details to give. Edward and I are just friends and nothing more, no matter how bad I want our relationship to go beyond that. _No more moping. You're supposed to be having the time of your life, not fretting over a relationship._ I pushed all those thoughts out of my mind and concentrated on the here and now.

We drove for about an hour and a half and I almost had a heart attack. The road we were on was really narrow and the bus driver was driving like a madman, going way over the recommended speed limit. The bus driver finally came to a stop near a tower.

"Alright mi amigos. Let's get a move on." We filed out of the bus and followed Armando towards the tower. He stopped at the bottom of it, "This is the Yohaku Observation Tower. We will be climbing up but, I have to warn you, there are 99 stairs and the staircase is very narrow. If you wish, you could remain down here, but the view from the top is spectacular."

There was no question as to what we were going to do. We climbed the stairs, Edward behind me making sure I was safe. Armando wasn't kidding when he said the stairs were narrow. Two people could barely fit on one stair. Once at the top, the view was breathtaking. The only thing you could see were miles upon miles of lush green landscape. There was a thick fog that was settled over the trees that made the forest seem even more spectacular. I walked over to the wall and looked out at the amazing sight before me. Edward was behind me, his arms wrapped around my waist and his head resting on my shoulder. I was beginning to think that he didn't care what Charlie, or any of our parents for that matter, thought about our relationship, or lack thereof. I certainly didn't mind.

"It's beautiful." I said in awe.

"Not nearly as beautiful as you."

I blushed, of course, and playfully slapped his arm. "I'm not beautiful," I said more to myself but, I'm sure he heard.

Edward turned me around in his arms. "Bella, you have no idea how beautiful you are. You don't see yourself clearly."

_Can he be any more perfect?_ I wrapped my arms around him and he returned the gesture, "Thank you."

"Anytime, Love."

"Say cheese!" Alice just had to interrupt our moment with the flash of a camera.

"Alice, what are you doing?" I said in annoyance, reluctantly breaking away from Edward's embrace.

"Esme left me in charge of taking pictures and I couldn't resist how cute you two look together."

"Why don't you go take pictures of Rose and Emmett?" Edward asked.

"They've been in love for years, so they're no fun anymore. There's just something about puppy love that's so appealing."

_Puppy love? _I quickly tried to deny it, "Alice, we're not in love. We're just friends."

"Sure you are. Just give it a little time. You two are going to get together soon enough. Trust me, I know these things." She said, tapping her temple.

"What are you, psychic?"

"I like to think so. Anyway, I'll leave you two love birds be. Have fun!" She said with a wink as she skipped off to rejoin Jasper. We had to rejoin the rest of our group to get some group photos, but it wasn't so bad.

Armando started speaking again once everybody got their pictures and we were back at the bottom of the tower. _"According to ancient Indian Legend, the good spirit 'Yuquiyu' (or 'Yokahu') reigned on his mighty mountain-top throne, protecting Puerto Rico and its people. __The rain forest only accounts for a small portion of Puerto Rico. The entire rainforest is only a small crescent shaped strip on the windward side of the El Yunque Mountains and lies in the El Yunque National Forest Reserve._

_He led us to a path that cut through the trees. "The rain forest is quiet and serene. Most of the time, the only sounds that can be heard are the fauna in the area and the water coursing down the natural waterfalls or down the rivers. El Yunque is very lush and the plants have adapted to benefit from the copious amounts of rainfall._

"_El Yunque boasts many exclusive species of plants and animals. One of the rarest animals is the Puerto Rican Parrot. Another resident here in the El Yunque is the coquis. Coquis are indigenous tree frogs that are very small. Listen." He commanded us. We did as he said and could hear little chirping noises. "That noise is made by the coquis."_

_As promised, Edward did not let me trip once. I stumbled a couple of times, but he was right there to catch me before I fell and, for that, I was grateful. _

The trail we had taken was a loop and we ended up by a body of water. Armando began speaking again, "This, right behind me, is El Baño Grande and is a natural pool here in the rain forest. The water in there is so pure, you can swim in it."

"Alright!" Emmett yelled, pumping his fist in the air.

"But, we will not be doing that today." Armando, reluctantly told Emmett.

"Aw, man!" he whined, hanging his head.

Rose tried to console him. She must have told him something really good because, in no time at all, Emmett was back to his usual loud self.

The other people took hundreds of pictures and, once they were done with that, we loaded back onto the bus. Edward led us back to our seats in the back of the bus. After everyone was back on the bus and a headcount was taken, we were on our way back towards the ship.

I yawned and Edward pulled me closer to his side. "Tired?"

I yawned again, proving his suspicion. He chuckled and pulled me onto his lap. "Sleep, Love." I tried keeping my eyes open, but once Edward started humming an unfamiliar tune and started stroking my hair again, I was under in no time flat.

**EPOV**

Once I started humming the lullaby I had written for Bella and stroking her silky hair, her breathing evened out and she fell into a deep sleep, curled into my chest. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Today had definitely been an adventure. Our minor fight is nothing more than a mere memory and Bella and I are as close as ever. When we were at the top of the tower, I had her pulled against my chest. I knew Charlie was close by, probably watching his daughter like a hawk, but I couldn't care less. If having Bella as more than a friend meant that I would have to endure the wrath of Charlie, I would gladly take it any day. On the trail, Bella tripped a couple of times, but I gladly caught her before she hurt herself. I'm amazed at how true her statement about being a klutz was. That didn't make me love her any less.

_What?!_

_Where did that come from? _I guess I'm not that surprised. After I saw how much it affected me when I saw Bella hurting because of what I had done, I knew our relationship had moved beyond a simple friendship. The next step would be to tell her how I really feel. We promised to not keep things from each other, and I intended to keep that promise.

I spent the hour and a half ride back to the ship in complete bliss. I relished in the feeling of Bella's body pressed up against my own. At some point during the drive, she had latched onto my shirt and nuzzled her head deeper into the crook of my neck. She had mumbled, so quietly I thought I didn't hear her correctly, "Edward." She was dreaming about me. She started getting restless and her breathing started to pick up.

I reassured her by stroking her hair again, "I'm right here, Love. I'm not going anywhere." I said that low enough that prying ears wouldn't hear, but loud enough for Bella to hear me. After that, she relaxed and was silent for the rest of the drive.

I hated to wake her up, but we were back at the ship and we needed to get off the bus. "Bella, Love, wake up. We're here."

She slowly opened her eyes, but she still seemed out of it. "How are you feeling?"

"Mmm, better."

"Good, I'm glad." She sat there on top of me for a few more moments before I asked. "Are you planning on letting me stand up or are we going to stay here on the bus?"

Realization dawned on her and she shot up off my lap. She looked around and realized that the last few people, besides us, were just leaving the bus. "Sorry, I'm not quite with it yet."

I stood up laughing, "I understand." I reached for her and pulled her close to my side as we exited the bus. She was a little unsteady on her feet, and I didn't want her falling down. She had done so good so far avoiding that and I wasn't about to let gravity win over her at the last minute.

We slipped our boarding passes into the slots, documenting our return to the ship. Everybody had decided to go their separate ways once back on the ship. I thought it best to take Bella back up to our room. We took the elevator so we wouldn't have to deal with the stairs. That was a disaster waiting to happen in her condition.

Slowly but surely, we made it back to the room, me supporting most of Bella's weight the whole way. "Do you want to go to the dining room for dinner, or do you want to stay in the room and order room service?"

"Can we just do room service?"

"Certainly. What would you like?" I handed her the room service menu.

She looked through the menu and decided on chicken strips and a side of ranch. I ordered a Swiss and mushroom burger with fries. We decided to put a movie on while waiting for the food. _Across the Universe_ was the movie of choice.

Soon after the movie started, there was a knock on the door, signaling the arrival of the food.

We finished eating and Bella was curled up against me on the bed. Evan Rachel Wood started singing:

_If I fell in love with you,  
Would you promise to be true  
And help me understand._

Cause I've been in love before  
And I've found that love was more,  
Than just holding hands.

If I give my heart to you,  
I must be sure from the very start  
That you would love me more than her.

Hearing these lyrics brought me back to when I mentioned Tanya earlier this morning. I knew I loved Bella more than I loved Tanya and to make progress in our relationship, I needed to tell Bella about her.

_If I trust in you,  
Oh please, don't run and hide.  
If I love you too,  
Oh please, don't hurt my pride like her,_

Cause I couldn't stand the pain.  
And I, would be sad if our new love was in vain,  
So I hope you see,  
That I would love to love you.

If I fell in love with you.

We finished watching the movie and Bella was nearly passed out. I was just about to disentangle myself from her, but she stopped me.

"Where are you going?" she asked, panic lacing her voice.

"I was just going to the couch."

She seemed to be contemplating something before she made her decision, "Could you lay with me?"

I was shocked, but excited at the same time. Maybe pushing forward in our relationship wouldn't be as hard as I had first thought. "Are you sure? I don't want you to regret anything."

"I'm sure," conviction in her voice.

Hesitantly, I made my way towards the bed and lay down next to her, our bodies not touching. She didn't seem to like that much. She wormed her way into my arms. Naturally, I wrapped her up in my embrace.

"Don't leave me," she whispered.

I didn't know where that came from, but it warmed my heart to no end. "Never," I vowed.

She got comfortable and fell asleep, once again.

"I love you, Bella." I murmured to myself before I fell into the most peaceful sleep I have ever had.

**A/N: We hope you enjoyed this chapter. Our grandpa's name is Armando and he is from Puerto Rico, so it fit. The song was "If I Fell" covered by Evan Rachel Wood, originally done by The Beatles. The links for Puerto Rico will be on our profiles. ****Sizobonana!!!!**


	11. Out of My League

Ch. 11: Out of My League

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean but we do own autographed pictures of Rob!!**

**A/N:** **Cześć ****moi znajomi****! (Polish!) Thanks for reading and reviewing for last chapter. Also thanks for story alerts, author alerts, favorite stories, favorite author, and reviews. We didn't have a quote for last chapter so there are 2 in this one. Thanks to lauren loves spunky for her speedy review! What happened to canibeyourmemory??? Where is our lovely review? Just kidding!! PLEASE READ BOTTOM AUTHOR'S NOTE FOR IMPORTANT INFORMATION!!!**

**EPOV**

The alarm I had set on my phone went off and I quickly shut it off before it could wake Bella. 7:00 is too god damn early to be up when you're on vacation but, our tour started at 8:30. I looked down and I couldn't be happier at the sight before me. Bella's head was on my chest, one arm draped lazily across my stomach. I had my arm under her neck, wrapping around her shoulders. There was a small smile playing on her lips. "Bella," I called, my lips ghosting across her forehead. She stirred and I placed a gentle kiss to her forehead. That seemed to do the trick.

"Good morning," I said as her eyes opened.

"Hi," she responded, her voice thick with sleep.

"How did you sleep?" I absentmindedly started rubbing my hand up and down her arm. She snuggled even closer, if that was possible, into my embrace.

"Very well, thank you. I have never slept more soundly. I can't even remember what I dreamed about." Little did she know that I had an idea of what, or rather who, her dreams were about. I had woken up in the middle of the night to hear Bella mumbling. Her words became more distinct as the minutes passed. She had mumbled my name a couple of times before I lulled her back to sleep by humming the piece I had written for her.

"I'm glad. As much as I hate to admit it, we need to get up. Your parents have decided to follow us on the same excursion again. We're going kayaking and snorkeling."

Her face lit up at the mention of this, "Really? I've always wanted to snorkel, but it's not really ideal in Washington."

I chuckled, "No, it definitely is not."

She pulled away from me and grabbed her clothes for today before heading into the bathroom. I immediately felt empty and wanted to pull her back into my arms but was knocked out of my reverie by a knock on the door.

"Edward! It's Alice, open up!" She sounded hysterical, so I ran to the door and yanked it open.

"What's wrong?" I already feared the worst before she spoke.

"Charlie's coming to check on Bella and let her know what we're doing today. I told him I would make sure she was decent before he came in here. You have to hide!"

_Fuck! _I started hiding all my belongings before Alice roughly pushed me into the closet and slammed the door. _I'm dead._ I didn't care if Charlie found out that my relationship with Bella was developing into something more than friendship, but I didn't want him to find out about our sleeping arrangements, especially last night's. Ever.

I heard her knock on the bathroom door before it opened. Bella sounded confused, "Alice? What are you doing here?"

Alice quickly filled Bella in on what she had told me.

"Where's Edward? If Charlie finds out about Edward, he's going to kill him and send me to a convent!"

"Don't worry; he's hiding in the closet. Just pretend like nothing's wrong."

Just then, another knock sounded on the door. "Bells?"

Someone opened the door. Bella. "Hi, Dad."

"Hey. Can I come in?"

_No!_ I wanted to shout but, I bit my tongue.

"Um, sure."

"Hi, Charlie! Long time, no see." Alice greeted.

"Hi, Alice."

I heard feet shuffling past the closet door and I held my breath for fear of being discovered.

"This is a nice room for you. How do you like it so far?"

"It's great, Dad. Thanks again."

"Anything for my little girl."

More movement resounded throughout the room. I'm guessing Charlie was taking a closer look at everything.

"We're going kayaking and snorkeling with the Cullens today."

"Yeah, Ed- I mean Alice told me. Sounds like fun!"

Footsteps were coming closer to my hiding place again. "It sure does. How big is this closet? Is it as big as ours?" The door handle jiggled slightly. _Oh shit!_ I started sweating and my heart was pounding a mile a minute in my chest as light slowly filtered into the dark closet.

"NO!!!" Alice and Bella shouted. The door quickly slammed shut with the force of a body.

"What? It's just a closet. It's not like you're hiding a boy in there. You aren't, are you?" Charlie asked sternly.

"No, of course not. Why would I have someone hiding in there? You know I never dated much and after the whole Jake thing…" She trailed off. _Who's this Jake character? _I guess we both had a few secrets that needed to be spilled. "It's just really messy in there. Alice bought me some things and I just threw everything in there. And I saw what your closet looks like and I can assure you it's exactly the same."

"It's true, Charlie. You know me, can't resist a good sale." Alice added in. _God, how I loved my sister._ She already had Charlie wrapped around her finger.

"Oh, well why didn't you just say so? Anyway, we'll be meeting at the Schooner Bar on Deck 4 at 8. Don't be late."

"We won't, Dad. We'll see you down there. I love you."

"Love you, too, Bells."

The door shut and three audible sighs were released.

"You owe me big time." Alice announced after she opened the closet door.

"Tell me about it. Thank you so much." My heart had finally calmed down and was back to a normal pace. I saw Bella behind Alice and pulled her into a hug. "How are you feeling, Love?"

She wrapped her arms around my torso and laid her head on my chest. "I'm fine now. I thought I was going to have a heart attack when Charlie went to the closet."

"You and me both. Let's hope that was the last time your dad decides to check on you. I don't know if I could handle a second time."

Alice cleared her throat, "Now that you two lovebirds are safe from the wrath of Charlie, finish getting ready and meet at the Schooner Bar." With that, she gracefully skipped out the door.

After Alice left, I pulled away from Bella and grabbed my swimming trunks and a t-shirt before heading into the bathroom to get ready.

Once we both deemed ourselves presentable, we left the room, once again, checking down the hallways for any signs of our families.

We went down to the Concierge Lounge on Deck 9 to grab something quick to eat before meeting everyone else down on Deck 4. We heard music drifting out of the bar as we were walking by.

_It's her hair and her eyes today  
that just simply take me away  
and the feeling that I'm falling further in love  
makes me shiver but in a good way  
all the times I have sat and stared  
as she thoughtfully thumbs through her hair  
and she purses her lips, bats her eyes as she plays,  
with me sitting there slack-jawed and nothing to say  
cuz I love her with all that I am  
and my voice shakes along with my hands  
cuz she's all that I see and she's all that I need  
and I'm out of my league once again_

"Hey, Bro!" Emmett boomed as Bella and I came into sight. Alice and Rose stole Bella, no doubt to give details on our little escapade this morning.

I sauntered over to Emmett and Jasper. "Hey, guys."

_It's a masterful melody when she calls out my name to me  
as the world spins around her she laughs, rolls her eyes  
and I feel like I'm falling but it's no surprise  
cuz I love her with all that I am  
and my voice shakes along with my hands  
cause it's frightening to be swimming in this strange sea  
but I'd rather be here than on land  
yes she's all that I see and she's all that I need  
and I'm out of my league once again_

"How are things between you and your lady friend?" Jasper asked.

"My 'lady friend' has a name."

"Oh, sorry. Bella."

"Thank you I've never been better."

"Did Alice go talk to you this morning? She said something about going to Bella's room before Charlie went in there, but I saw her go to your room."

_Oh shit. _I was debating whether or not to just tell them about Bella and me staying in the same room. I pulled them farther away from the group. "If I tell you something, you have to swear on your life not to tell a soul."

"Alright! Eddie-boy finally did the hanky panky!" People who were walking past us looked over as Emmett yelled that.

"Emmett, shut the fuck up. And I told you not to call me that."

"Sorry, but I was beginning to think you were gay."

Of course he would think that. "I am most definitely not gay and I haven't done the 'hanky panky' as you so kindly put it."

_It's her hair and her eyes today  
that just simply take me away  
and the feeling that I'm falling further in love  
makes me shiver but in a good way  
all the times I have sat and stared  
as she thoughtfully thumbs through her hair  
and she purses her lips, bats her eyes as she plays,  
with me sitting there slack-jawed and nothing to say  
cuz I love her with all that I am  
and my voice shakes along with my hands  
cause it's frightening to be swimming in this strange sea  
but I'd rather be here than on land  
yes she's all that I see and she's all that I need  
and I'm out of my league once again_

"So, if you haven't done the dirty deed yet, what do you need to tell us?" Jasper put a stop to our bickering.

"First, do you swear not to tell anybody?"

"Nobody?" I'm sure Emmett would tell Rose in a heartbeat.

"Nobody," I clarified.

"Fine," they both agreed.

I told them how Bella and I were accidentally booked in the same cabin. Now that I have gotten to know and love Bella, I realized it was the best mistake that has ever happened to me.

"Well Phuket, Thailand." Emmett said as I finally finished my explanation.

"Do you sleep in the same bed?" Jasper asked, curiosity in his voice.

_Why does everybody think that?_ Although, now it's true. "We only slept in the same bed last night. The previous nights I was on the couch and Bella was on the bed." They seemed to understand and I trusted that they wouldn't tell anybody.

"Let's move out!" Carlisle called out to our group. The three of us rejoined everybody else and we took the stairs down to Deck 1.

**BPOV**

After Edward and I met up with our group, Alice and Rose immediately kidnapped me.

"I want details." Alice demanded once we were out of earshot of everybody else.

"What details? You know that Edward and I are in the same room and there's nothing else to tell."

"What?!" Rose yelled. I forgot that she didn't know the situation Edward and I were in. "What do you mean 'in the same room'?"

I figured it was best to just tell her and get it off my chest. "Edward and I were mistakenly put in the same room. We tried getting separate rooms, but the lady at the customer service desk said that there were no available rooms, so we had deal with being in the same room.

"At the airport in Seattle, I accidentally ran into Edward and he snapped at me. When I first found out that we were put in the same room, I was pissed as hell but now that I've had the chance to get to know him, I couldn't be happier."

Rose looked at me in disbelief, while Alice had her all-knowing smirk gracing her face. "You love him." She accused.

I looked over at Edward standing with Jasper and Emmett and my feelings were confirmed. "Yeah, I do."

I was bombarded by their hugs and squealing. "Have you told him?" Rosalie inquired.

"No. I don't think he feels the same way."

Alice knocked me upside the head, "How can you say that?! I've seen the way he looks at you and there's no denying that he returns those feelings. He went out with Tanya for over a year and he never looked at her or acted the same way around her as he does you."

"You need to tell him. You'll regret it if you don't and you let him slip away."

I didn't want to think about leaving him. It felt so right to wake up in his arms this morning and I can't believe it took me this long to admit my feelings about Edward. "I think it's too soon but, I will tell him eventually. I just want to enjoy the time we have together and not think about going our separate ways."

"If you don't tell him, so help me, I will make it happen." For being so tiny, Alice could definitely be intimidating when she wanted to be.

"You can be scarier than Charlie. I can't even imagine what he would've done to Edward this morning if he had found him."

"What happened this morning?" Rose asked.

"Nothing much. Charlie decided to check on Bella this morning, so I said I would make sure she was decent. I really went over there to make sure Edward was hidden. I pushed him into the closet before Charlie got there. He decided to have a look around the room and almost opened the closet, but we were able to stop him before he discovered Edward." Alice replied nonchalantly.

"Edward would've been killed, or worse; castrated."

"You're telling me. I thought he was going to find him and he would've sent me to a convent."

Rosalie was laughing hard at that one.

Carlisle chose that moment to call our group to order, "Let's move out!"

Alice, Rosalie, and I walked back over to our parents. I felt two strong arms wrap around my waist. "I missed you," he whispered into my ear, his chin resting on my shoulder.

I leaned back onto his chest. "We were separated for ten minutes and were never out of sight."

"I know, but I can't help it if I'd rather have you right here." He squeezed me for emphasis. He let go of my waist and took my hand as we started walking down to the gangway. We found the tour guide holding up the sign for Kayak and Snorkel Adventure.

"Hi, everybody. My name is Jim and I will be taking you to your destination. Who's excited to do some kayaking and snorkeling?"

All of a sudden, I see a flash of black streak across my vision and jump. Alice had jumped on Emmett's back as he caught her and they both shouted, "WE ARE!!!"

Our group, as well as several other passengers, couldn't help but laugh at them. "Do they do this a lot?" I asked Edward between hysterics.

"Only every vacation, it's a little tradition they made up a few years ago."

"Alright! I'm glad two people are here to have a good time." Jim said.

After a few more people joined the tour, we began walking towards the kayak rental place. Once again, we were paired off and Edward and I were partners.

"Do you want to be in the front or back of the kayak?" Edward asked as we were getting ready to depart on our excursion.

"I'll take the front."

"Fair enough."

Everyone was given a few rules and regulations to follow before we were allowed out into the water. Edward dragged the kayak out into the water and hopped in. He held his hands out to me as he helped me jump in as well. Everyone was in their kayaks soon enough and we were off.

The water was crystal clear and extremely blue. There were many schools of fish of different colors and coral below the surface. It was definitely a sight to behold. "It's so pretty," I marveled. I was so caught up in the sights that were around me that I stopped paddling. Luckily, Edward picked up my slack.

"This is already my favorite kayaking trip."

"You've done this before?"

"Only a couple of times. My previous favorite was Catalina Island in California."

"I've never been there. I've only been to Phoenix to visit family. Other than that, I haven't left Washington."

"I'll have to change that." He said with confidence.

We continued kayaking for about an hour longer. Eventually, we reached a rocky shoreline. Everyone hopped out of the kayaks and pulled them up onto the beach. Everyone stripped down to their bathing suits and got their snorkeling gear and headed back out into the ocean. I looked over at Edward who was waist deep in the water adjusting his mask. I was awestruck as I witnessed his lean muscles contracting with his movements. He was definitely a sight to behold. He turned around and my breath caught in my throat. "Are you coming?" I couldn't answer at first; I was distracted by his defined abs and his swimming trunks sitting low on his hips exposing his "V".

"Bella?"

"Huh, oh yeah, I'm coming." Needless to say, I had some not so pure thoughts racing through my mind.

The marine life was even more unbelievable when you're in the water with it. There were many types of coral as well as fish. The diversity between the different species was astounding. Edward stayed close by my side the entire time we were snorkeling.

After about half an hour, Edward pulled up out of the water, dragging me with him. "Take a walk with me?"

I was confused, but complied anyway, "Sure."

We returned the snorkeling gear and Edward took my hand, leading me along the rocky shore.

He seemed distracted, "What's on your mind?"

He sighed and ran his free hand through his hair, messing his bronze locks up even more. "I'm ready to tell you about Tanya."

"Oh."

"It's not that bad, I just don't like talking about it. Tanya and I started going out towards the end of junior year. I thought I loved her and I thought she loved me back. On more than one occasion, I caught her kissing other guys but she insisted each time that it was nothing and to forget about it. I trusted her, so I did. After graduation, Alice and I went to a party for one of our classmates. Tanya said she was going to meet me there, but I didn't see her. I went upstairs to try and escape the loud music. I opened a door and found Tanya, half naked, straddling Mike, who I loathe. That was the last straw; I broke up with her that night and haven't talked to her since. She's tried calling and texting me, but I keep ignoring her. That day in the airport, when you ran into me," he grimaced at the memory, "was the day after I found her with Mike. I was having a really bad week and took my anger out on you and that wasn't right. I'm sorry, Bella. I didn't mean to hurt you."

We had stopped walking and sat down on a large boulder by this point. Edward was staring out into the ocean watching the others have a good time. I couldn't believe someone could do this to him. Sure, he was rude towards me in the beginning, but it all makes sense now. "Edward," he looked at me and my heart broke to see how much that bitch hurt him, "I told you I forgive you. Tanya had no right to hurt you. You are one of the sweetest, most caring people I have ever met. You don't deserve to be treated like shit and walked all over." I pulled him into a hug, running my fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck.

Realizing that he was being completely honest with me, I decided to tell him about Jake. I released him from my embrace and began, "I know how you feel. About a week before this vacation, I broke up with my boyfriend, Jake. He and I had been friends since we were in diapers because our dads were friends. We had just started going out about a year ago even though we were good friends. One night, we were at my house and he told me he wanted to progress in our relationship. I asked him what he meant and he said he wanted to have sex with me." Edward's normally calm, loving gaze turned murderous. I squeezed his hand in reassurance. "I told him I wasn't ready and he said he would wait until I was and that he was sorry he brought it up. Things were good for a few weeks, but about two weeks ago, he told me that if I wouldn't have sex with him, he would dump me. I still wasn't ready and broke up with him then and there. He was shocked, to say the least, but I left his house that day and never looked back."

"He doesn't deserve you, Bella. I can't believe he was willing to give you up for a lame ass reason as sex."

"Yeah well, it doesn't really surprise me. I realize now that he never really loved me for me. He was just hoping to get into my pants."

"Thank you for telling me, Bella" Edward pulled me into another hug and pressed his lips to my forehead. I drowned in the feeling of euphoria and lightness of now having these issues out in the open.

"Enough lovey dovey, you two. It's time to head back." Alice just had to ruin our moment.

"You have the worst timing, you know." Edward said, annoyed.

"I know, but you still love me."

"Yes I do, Ali." He kissed her cheek as he snaked his arm around my waist.

Edward, Alice, and I walked along the beach towards our group. We hopped back in the kayaks and paddled our way back towards the ship.

Once the kayaks were returned, we still had a few hours before we had to be back on the ship, so Alice decided that we would do some shopping. She had found out where the best deals were and what you could buy at what store, so we were "on a mission from God" as she had put it.

We went to Diamonds International to get a charm for the bracelet that she had got in San Juan. At each port, a charm was given to remember the trip by. At Ammolite By The Sea, we found some jewelry that was made with the rare stone. Esme went Omni Linens and she, as well as Renée, got a 72"x90" hand-embroidered table cloth with eight matching napkins for $35. Finally, at Del Sol, we all got some souvenirs that go from black and white to vibrant colors in the sun. We agreed that we would stop by each Del Sol and get at least one thing.

We were all shopped out, except for Alice of course, and lazily walked back to the ship.

**A/N: Thanks for reading! The song in this chapter was "Out of My League" by Stephen Speaks. Abso-frickin-lutely love that song! Ok, Bella and Edward will be telling each other that they love each other in the near future and we want your ideas on how that should happen. You can review or PM or whatever, we do read and respond to each one. Thanks for your input and loyalty for sticking with us! ****Do widzenia!!**


	12. Author's Note

We hate to do this to everyone because we don't like it when other authors do this but it's necessary. We realized that the word count for each of our chapter ones didn't match up, so we reviewed them and fixed the problem. We had two parts that repeated so we took those out, and hopefully there aren't any more mistakes. xjuulieee had mentioned that it did repeat but we didn't look closely enough and didn't find it. After carefully reviewing the chapter, we found what she was talking about and fixed it. If she's still reading this story then we are so sorry for not understanding what she was talking about at first. We are very thankful for her catching our mistake. If anybody else finds any other mistake of any kind, please let us know asap. The changes made do not affect or change anything in the story. Once again, we are sorry and will try to not let this happen again. Thanks for sticking with us.


	13. Black Magic Woman

Ch. 12: Black Magic Woman

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean or anything else.**

**A/N: ****γεια σου τους φίλους μου!! (Bet ya that threw you for a loop. It's Greek.) Thanks for reading and reviewing. Thanks for story alerts, author alerts, favorite stories, favorite authors, and the reviews. Special thanks and chocolate chip cookies that were just made to mfrancesj, XoXoEarthbound AngelXoXo (that was fun to type!!), twilightlovr1995, and we're glad canibeyourmemory is okay and didn't fall off the face of the earth! Where is lauren loves spunky???? We keep losing our reviewers, just kidding!! The first quote from last chapter was "Well Phuket, Thailand!" from Juno and the second quote was "on a mission from God" from The Blues Brothers. So nobody wants them to say they love each other? We need ideas or it's not going to happen. We only got one suggestion from lauren loves spunky and it was from chapter 10 before we put the note out. HELP!! S.O.S.!! **

**BPOV **

"I thought vacations were supposed to be relaxing. I'm exhausted." I complained as I flopped down on the couch.

Edward smirked, "That's what shopping with Alice does to you." He lay down on the couch with his head resting in my lap. I absentmindedly began stroking my fingers through his hair. I had wanted to do that ever since I first saw the unruly mop of bronze hair. He groaned in response and closed his eyes. "You don't know how good that feels."

I scoffed, "Actually, I know perfectly well how good it feels. I also know how it feels when I do this." My fingers ceased their motions and I looked around the room as if nothing had happened.

His eyes shot open and narrowed into slits as he growled playfully, "You're such a tease."

"Takes one to know one," was my very mature response along with sticking my tongue out at him.

"Are you having fun?" I couldn't stop my fingers from unconsciously running through his hair again. His eyes automatically closed again and he looked so peaceful without a care in the world

"Absolutely. This vacation is more fun than a barrel of monkeys."

He looked up at me as if I had lost my mind. "Barrel of monkeys?"

"Oh, shut up," I said as I playfully slapped his shoulder. "Are _you_ having fun?"

"Yep, this is, by far, my favorite vacation."

"Ah, so you're enjoying all the attention from the shameless female passengers."

"What attention? It's hard to notice other girls when I've got the most beautiful one standing by my side all the time."

I, naturally, blushed at his comment. I tried to play it off, "Whatever, Romeo." My stomach chose that moment to speak up.

"Hungry much?" He asked as he looked up at me through his thick lashes.

"Yeah. It's kind of hard to concentrate on food when Alice is dragging you store to store looking at everything every store had to offer."

"I know exactly how that goes." He stood up and stretched. As he did so, his shirt rode up, exposing his abs. It brought me back to the beach when he discarded his shirt on the beach. He must have noticed my ogling, "Like what you see?"

I avoided answering, "You're so conceited."

"Am not!" He countered.

"Come on, I'm not about to argue with a two year old." I grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the door.

He stopped moving and pulled his hand out of mine and crossed his arms over his chest. "I am not a two year old."

"My point exactly. Would you like me to call you Eddie?"

Horror showed on his gorgeous face as he sobered up. "I'll do anything as long as you don't call me that. I absolutely detest that name." He walked briskly out the door and I followed.

"Whatever you say, Eddie." I snickered as he turned around to glare at me. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't help it. I promise I won't call you that again. Why don't you like it anyway?"

"Thank you. Emmett, one day, decided to call me that and once he figured out how much I hated it, he wouldn't stop using it."

"I guess I would be upset, too. Emmett can be annoying."

"Can be? He _is_ annoying."I caught up to him and laced my fingers through his. He relaxed under my touch and smiled his crooked smile at me.

We made it down to the Windjammer Café and filled our plates.

"Eddie-boy! Over here!" We looked around the room and noticed Emmett sitting at a booth, waving his hands around like a madman, with Rosalie, who had her head in her hands.

"Could you be any louder?" Rose asked.

"I can try: ED-"

Rosalie had clamped her hand around her fiancée's mouth. "Babe, I was being sarcastic. You don't need to be any louder. People in China could hear you with your volume."

Edward and I had made it over to their table and sat down.

"So, what were you two kids up to before coming down here to grab a bite to eat?" Emmett raised his eyebrows suggestively.

Edward sighed, "Emmett, not everybody's like you and Rose. We all don't go around having mad sex like a couple of sexually frustrated bunnies."

"Hey!" Rose and Emmett yelled in unison.

"No offense," Edward added, throwing his hands up in surrender.

"Although, Rosie, you're a very cute bunny." She smiled and kissed his cheek in thanks. They really were perfect for each other. "So, if you guys weren't having mad sex, what were you doing?"

"We were just talking," I answered.

"Just talking?" Emmett pushed.

"Just talking," Edward clarified.

"Not even making out"

"Nope," I popped the 'p' as I said that.

"Well fuck, you guys are boring as hell. Come on, we're in the Caribbean, you guys have got to live a little."

"I think it's cute. We were like you guys when we started going out, before we turned into a couple of sexually frustrated bunnies," Rose piped up. I tensed a little as she said that. _Were Edward and I ready for that?_ I know I was if he was.

"Now you guys can't keep your hands off each other," Edward said as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

"Did Esme and Renée tell you guys what we're doing for dinner?" Rose asked.

"No. I just assumed we would be going to the dining room." I placed my hand on Edward's knee and began tracing patterns on his leg.

"Well, we were, until they saw that there's going to be a mystery dinner tonight at Portofino." Portofino is one of the restaurants that you need reservations to get into.

"That sounds like so much fun. When is it?" I asked.

"It's after the Ice Show tonight. The show is at 7:00 and the dinner starts at 8:15. We actually meet in the Sky Bar on Deck 12 and they walk us over to Portofino on Deck 11."

"I'm so excited now!" I could hardly sit still. I've always loved mysteries and this was the perfect situation. I've never done a mystery dinner, let alone, on a cruise ship, and the man I love is going to be right there with me.

"Calm down, Love. You're going to turn into Alice if you don't stop jumping up and down."

"Hey, I heard that!" I looked up and saw Alice and Jasper standing behind Emmett and Rose. They pulled up two more chairs and joined us.

We sat around for a few hours just talking and joking around. I've only known everyone for a few days, but I already can't imagine not having them in my life. Emmett and Jasper were like the protective older brothers I wished I had growing up but never did. Alice and Rosalie were who I felt comfortable going to if I ever needed to talk about anything. Carlisle and Esme were like another set of parents. Don't get me wrong, Renée and Charlie are wonderful parents and I wouldn't trade them for the world, but Carlisle and Esme had a spark about them that made them irresistible to be around. And finally, Edward was the wonderful, hopefully-soon-to-be boyfriend that would do anything and everything in his power to look after me. He was always there to catch me when I fell and I felt completely safe and secure in his arms.

After Edward and I left the group, we went down to the Concierge Club to grab one of the movies we could rent.

"What's your poison?" Edward asked me as we were browsing through the many movie titles.

I smirked and pulled out a few movies: _The Breakfast Club_, _Pretty in Pink_, _Sixteen Candles_, _St. Elmo's Fire_, _Dirty Dancing_, and _Grease_.

"I'm guessing you're a fan of movies made in the 80s."

"Hell yeah. They're so light hearted and for entertainment purposes only. There weren't preachy or anything."

"Fair enough." He pulled _The Breakfast Club_ from my hands. "Personally, this one is my favorite."

We checked the movie out and went back to our room. Edward put the DVD in as I grabbed an extra blanket from the closet. Edward led me towards the couch. He sat down as I did the same and snuggled close to his side. He wrapped this arm around my shoulder and I was completely content.

During the movie, I would quote my favorite parts and was surprised when Edward would quote them right along with me. I laughed when my favorite part came on: Brian, Bender, and Claire were smoking and Brian says "I said, 'can I hold that smoke?'" in the funny voice. Bender knocks him in the forehead and he falls back.

The movie ended but Edward and I made no move to get up. I looked up into his emerald eyes as he looked down into my brown ones. We slowly leaned our heads towards each other. Our lips touched and sparks went flying as my eyes closed on their own free will. His hand came down to cup my cheek as my hand reached behind his head and laced through his hair. He licked my bottom lip, asking for entrance. I gladly complied and opened my mouth to deepen the kiss.

I didn't want to go too far and I'm guessing he didn't want to either because he started to place little kisses on my lips. We broke away and I slowly opened my eyes.

**EPOV**

I couldn't be happier. I was, at first, hesitant to kiss Bella, but once our lips touched, my worries faded away. I felt an electric shock as we kissed and I wondered if she had felt it too.

As her eyes opened, I looked down at her with love shining through. I pulled her closer to me, if that was even possible, and sweetly kissed her forehead. "You don't know how long I've wanted to do that," I murmured against her skin.

She placed a kiss at the hollow of my neck, "You're not the only one, Romeo." I felt her smile against my skin as she said this.

I ran my fingers up and down her arm as she lay with me, her head on my chest. She was fiddling with the fabric of my shirt. I enjoyed just being here with Bella. There was no need for constant chatter. We could sit in a comfortable silence and say everything that needed to be said through our actions.

We were pulled out of our little bubble by knocking on our door. We both groaned at the interruption

"Don't answer it. Maybe if we're quiet enough, they'll leave."

"If it's Alice, she won't leave. She's very persistent and knows we're here."

"Edward, Bella, I know you're in there, so don't ignore me!" Alice yelled through the door.

"Damn pixie," Bella muttered as I reluctantly left her on the couch.

I started walking to the door, but I felt a tug on my shirt. I turned around and Bella pressed her lips to mine. After the kiss, I smirked. "Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?"

She shrugged, "I felt like it."

"EDWARD!!!" Alice screeched.

"I'm coming!" I yelled back.

I threw the door open, clearly annoyed. "What?!"

"I need Bella. Rose and I are going to help her get ready for tonight."

"What if I told you she wasn't here?"

"Don't you dare lie to me, Edward Anthony Masen Cullen."

"Argh, fine. Bella, Alice is here to take you to her torture chamber."

Bella appeared behind me and wrapped her arms around my waist. "I don't want to go," she mumbled into my back.

I decided that bargaining may work. "If Bella goes with you tonight, you have to promise that you will not put her through this again unless she asks you. Got it?"

Alice contemplated my offer before making a final decision. "Deal. Come on Bella, we have a lot to do." She grabbed Bella's hand and yanked her out from behind me.

Bella looked at me with reluctance in her eyes. I tried reassuring her, "Don't worry, Love. It'll be over before you know it." I brought her into my embrace and kissed the top of her head.

"I don't have all day," Alice said, tapping her wrist as if it were a watch.

Bella pulled away, "Bye."

"I'll see you soon, Love."

Once I said those words, Alice took off down the hall, dragging Bella behind her.

"If she gets hurt, I'm holding you responsible, Alice!" I called down the hall.

Alice, ever so gracefully, flipped me off.

After Bella was dragged away against her will, I didn't know what to do with myself. That didn't last long. Five minutes after Alice and Bella left, there was another knock on the door. I looked out the peep hole and saw Emmett's hulking form beside Jasper in the hallway, each holding a set of clothes.

I opened the door as Emmett barged in. "Hey, Eddie!" He clapped me on the back. As soon as Jasper came into the room, I shut the door.

"How many times do I have to tell you that I despise that name? What are you guys doing here anyway?"

"Alice told us to get ready for dinner in here today," Jasper informed with a small smile on his lips. _He's so whipped._

"How are things progressing with your lady friend?" Emmett asked.

I looked pointedly at Jasper, "You've got him saying that now?"

He threw his hands up in surrender. "It's not my fault his brain's like a sponge. He's like a little kid repeating everything he hears."

"You're just jealous that I have a bigger brain than you do," Emmett challenged.

"You are so smart, Emmett. That is exactly why we are so jealous of you," I said sarcastically.

He seemed to actually believe what I just said because he puffed his chest out a little more and held his head a bit higher.

"Anyway, how _are_ things moving along?" Jasper asked.

"We're going steady." I didn't feel the need to tell them about the amazing kiss we shared not fifteen minutes earlier.

We all got dressed and ready fairly quickly. I was trying to tame my hair but was having no luck whatsoever.

"You might as well give up now. Your hair has never cooperated, even when we were little," Jasper said.

Just as I was about to give up, my hair stayed put. "There," I said triumphantly. I shot Jasper a look that said 'I told you so' and went to find my shoes.

I did a sweep of the room to make sure I wasn't forgetting anything before we left. We were going to stop by Alice and Jasper's room to pick up the girls and then we were going to meet Charlie, Renée, Carlisle, and Esme in their room.

Emmett knocked, or rather banged, on the door. Jasper didn't dare use his key because we all know not to interrupt Alice if she's "working on a masterpiece," as she put it. We would have hell to pay if we ever did that. We learned our lesson a few years ago.

Thankfully, Rosalie opened the door fairly quickly. Emmett scooped her up into his arms and carried her into the room as he kissed her. Jasper and I walked in behind them and shut the door. We didn't see Alice or Bella, so assumed they were in the bathroom finishing up.

Sure enough, the bathroom door opened and out walked Alice, who threw herself into Jasper's arms, followed by Bella. She didn't notice me right away because she was preoccupied with fiddling with her dress. As soon as she looked up and saw me standing there waiting for her, she smiled and ran towards me. In true Bella fashion, she tripped over nothing and fell into my arms. I chuckled, "Careful, Love. We don't need to take a trip down to the infirmary."

"Sorry, I just missed you." She stood up on her tip-toes and kissed me sweetly.

"You owe me 50 bucks, Rose," Alice quipped.

Bella and I looked at each other, confusion on our faces. "Did you guys place a bet on us?" I asked, my eyes narrowing into slits.

"Of course we did. I bet Rose that you guys had already kissed."

"How do you know that wasn't our first kiss?" Bella asked.

"If was too short for a first kiss. For you two, anyway. And plus, I just know these things."

"Of course you do, Ali. Let's go before our parents send a search party out to look for us." With that, we left the room and walked to Carlisle and Esme's room. "Have I told you how beautiful you look?" I whispered to Bella as I wrapped my arm around her waist.

"No, you haven't, but thank you," she answered with the blush that I love so much. We were trailing behind everybody, so by the time we got to the door, it was already open and we just walked in. Bella stopped dead in her tracks.

I was confused, "What's wrong?"

She seemed to snap out of her daze with a shake of her head. "Nothing, it's just so…extravagant."

"Personally, I prefer the coziness of our room." I pulled her towards the piano and sat her on the bench next to me. I started to play a few warm up exercises as the others were talking.

"I didn't know you played piano."

I nodded my head, "Ever since I was five. Esme wanted each of us to do some sort of extracurricular activity and I chose this. I fell in love with the piano and have been playing ever since."

"Wow. Do you write your own music?"

"Sometimes. I have to be really inspired to write something." I smirked, knowing she inspired one of my pieces. I started playing Esme's favorite. "I wrote this one for Esme. When I first played it for her, she had tears in her eyes. She hasn't lately when I've played it, but she tells me that it still touches her heart every time."

I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked behind me, never ceasing my fingers. Esme was looking down at me with a smile. "Thank you, Edward. I love you."

"I love you, too, Mom." I looked around and realized we had gained an audience.

"Alright everyone, we don't want to be late. We still have to get our seats for the show," Esme chided.

I stood up from the bench and held my hand out to Bella. She seemed a bit distracted, so I looked at what she was looking at. She and Charlie were staring at each other, seeming to be having a silent conversation. He dropped his gaze from her and looked at me, clearly not happy.

"What's wrong, Charlie?" Renée asked him.

"Nothing," he growled as he walked out the door.

"It's going to be ok," I whispered, kissing her temple. She leaned into my touch and smiled in response, but I could tell it was forced.

We took the elevators down to the ice rink and found seats. Everyone seemed to be oblivious to the tension between Charlie and Bella. I thought it would be best to sit as far from him as possible, so we sat on one end of the row while he and Renée sat on the other end.

Once the show started, Bella seemed to forget about the incident in the room and, for that, I was glad. I hated to see Bella upset and would do anything in my power to try to cheer her up. "Are you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. He's just worried about me. After the whole Jake incident, he's been really overprotective. In the beginning, I was really torn up about it and he doesn't want me to experience that again. Once he realizes how much I lo-care about you, he'll understand." She snuggled closer to my side as my hand was chaffing up and down her arm.

The lights dimmed and the show began. If Bella thought I was a good skater, I could only imagine what she would think about these professionals. The choreography in each of the numbers was amazing and each move was executed perfectly.

_I got a Black Magic Woman.  
I got a Black Magic Woman.  
I got a Black Magic Woman,  
She's got me so blind I can't see;  
But she's a Black Magic Woman and  
she's trying to make a devil out of me._

A guy and a girl were skating together. Their routine started out slow as the song began with the guitar intro. As the lyrics began, they started skating faster and were incorporating more moves into their routine.

_Don't turn your back on me, baby.  
Don't turn your back on me, baby.  
Yes, don't turn your back on me, baby,  
Stop messing around with your tricks;  
Don't turn your back on me, baby,  
'cause you might just pick up my magic sticks._

Bella leaned over the armrest and whispered, "Okay, I thought you were a good skater. I'm sorry to say it, but you have nothing on these guys.

I feigned hurt, "And here I was, just trying to teach you how to skate. You are so ungrateful." I placed my hand over my heart but smirked down at her to show I was kidding.

_You got your spell on me, baby.  
You got your spell on me, baby.  
Yes, you got your spell on me, baby,  
Turnin' my heart into stone;  
I need you so bad,  
Magic Woman I can't leave you alone._

The show continued on for another half hour. Once it was over, our group stood up and migrated towards the elevators.

**A/N: Thanks for reading! The song in this chapter was "Black Magic Woman" by Santana. We were going to finish up the day but it was already really long, going on 4,000 words so next chapter. We got tickets to go see No Doubt and Paramore on July 31!!!!!! So excited for that! A new chapter for The Red Line was just put up as we were typing this so bye. ****αντίο!**


	14. But For Now

Ch. 13: But For Now

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean but we do own a copy of Twilight, does that count?**

**A/N:****привет****мои друзья!! (Russian! This language thing is getting hard.) Thanks for reading and reviewing. You guys seriously make going to school bearable. We don't know what we'd do without all of you and your reviews. Thanks for the story alerts, author alerts, favorite stories, favorite authors, and reviews. A special thanks to canibeyourmemory, whose name is in our dictionary on the computer by the way, lauren loves spunky, tkeaton1, mfrancesj, and bluewolfeyes. The quote from last chapter was "What's your poison?" from The Breakfast Club, highly recommend it. Thanks to lauren loves spunky for her suggestion.**

**BPOV**

After the ice skating show ended, our group took the elevator up to the Sky Bar. Edward and I were in the back of the elevator, Charlie and Renée in the front. I was still upset with Charlie, but I had calmed down enough to realize that he was just looking out for my best interest. Edward sensed I was still upset and leaned down to kiss my temple. I let out a gust of breath and smiled up at him in thanks.

We reached Deck 12 and stepped out of the elevator. Outside of the bar, there was a sign that said "Reserved for Mystery Dinner". A crew member who was standing by the door was waiting to examine our tickets. He glanced at the tickets Esme and Renée were holding, saying, "Enjoy the mystery dinner."

There were a few people inside already talking animatedly. We were able to find enough seats for all of us to sit together. A waiter came around and took our drink orders. I ordered another virgin Madras, those things are addicting. I looked around our group and noticed how happy everyone was interacting with one another. I think my parents and I have included seven more people into our family.

Soon enough, the bar became full and the lights dimmed for the beginning of the show. The skit started out with giving some background information on the person who was killed. After that, there were five suspects' backgrounds that we were filled in on. The skit was executed perfectly. One of the crew members stepped onto the stage, microphone in hand, to let us know that we would now be led to Portofino, where we would get to interview the suspects and decide who we thought committed the murder.

We stood up, me intertwining my fingers with Edward's, and were led to the restaurant by a few of the crew members. Our tickets were taken from us this time to prevent any "additions" to our party. We were led to a table for ten in the middle of the room. We resumed the same seating arrangement as in the dining room, Edward's and my hands linked under the table. Edward leaned over and asked, "What do you think?"

"This is really interesting. I've always loved mysteries and ghosts and things, so this is perfect."

He smiled his crooked smile at my truthful answer, "I'm glad."

After we ordered our food, we fell into easy chatter. Before we knew it, a crew member announced that the suspects would now be making their rounds to the tables so we could interview them. I looked over at Alice as she whipped out a legal notepad, a fancy pen engraved with her name, and, last but not least, a long, tan trench coat that made her look like a police investigator. "She doesn't do anything halfway, does she?" I asked Edward.

"Oh, you have no idea."

One by one, the suspects came to our table. Alice wasted no time in asking each of them questions, jotting down notes as they spoke. With Alice's interrogations, the rest of us didn't feel the need to ask any questions to the suspects. As each of them left the table, I couldn't help but notice the sighs they each released.

Our food had come but Alice was still engrossed in her findings. Jasper tried encouraging her to at least eat a few bites but she, obviously, didn't hear him. We left her alone knowing she'd snap at us if we bugged her too much.

Emmett was sitting next to her and was almost as interested in Alice's findings as she was. He, too, was wearing a long, tan trench coat along with the hat. I snorted and shook my head at the two of them. The rest of us had reached our decisions and wrote them down on pieces of paper that were provided. Emmett asked Miss Humphrey "Says here that a Muppet got whacked on Sesame Street last night. Where, exactly, were you around ten-ish?"

Miss Humphrey gave her answer confidently and answered every other question Alice and Emmett threw at her. In my opinion, she didn't do it. Maybe I'm not the best judge when it comes to this.

"Who do you think did it?" Edward asked.

"Nope. I'm not going to tell you. You'll just have to wait and find out."

He looked at me from under his dark, thick lashes, voice lowering into a seductive tone, "Please, Bella."

_Oh shit, I'm in trouble._ I immediately looked away, trying to regain some sense of coherency. Thankfully, I was able to stick to my resolve. I kept my gaze away from his smoldering stare. "Nice try, Romeo, but I am not going to tell you. Patience is a virtue." My voice was a little shaky, but other than that, there was no indication of the power he held over me with his stare alone.

Edward didn't seem to like my response. He slouched in his chair, crossed his arms over his chest, and a small pout formed on his lips. If I didn't know any better, I would've thought he was trying a new tactic. Looking at his lips brought me back to the amazing kiss we shared. _Stop it! He's just trying to pull you into his trap_, I scolded myself. I chanced another look at his heartbreaking expression. "Aww, what's the matter, Romeo?" I asked, placing my hand on his knee, giving it a squeeze.

He didn't answer. "Come on, Edward. You can't be upset just because I refuse to tell you who I chose." I looked around our table to make sure nobody was paying attention to us before I kissed him. It was sweet and chaste, but it seemed to break him out of his brooding. His pout was now replaced with his crooked smile that I loved so much and his fingers were, once again, linked through mine.

"That's what was wrong," he leaned in closer, his lips barely grazing my ear, "I missed you."

"You're such a cheater. I thought something was really bugging you. And I'm not complaining, but how could you miss me? We've practically spent every moment of this vacation with each other."

"How could something be bugging me when I have you right here with me?" He wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me closer to him for emphasis. "Just because we've spent most of our time together doesn't mean I don't miss you. I love the time we spend with just the two of us." He kissed my temple again.

"Well, when you put it like that, I missed you, too." I lay my head on his shoulder, completely content.

Alice finally decided on who she thought the murderer was and began eating, acting as bubbly as she normally would. After we finished eating, the same crew member announced that he would now reveal who the murderer was. Alice was practically vibrating in her seat with anticipation.

"Alright, folks, the murderer is…" the crew member trailed off for added effect, "Miss Humphrey, the mistress to the victim." He waved his hand to the woman who was standing to his left.

"I knew it!!" Alice and Emmett yelled, jumping out of their seats at the same time. As they jumped up, Miss Humphrey jumped off the stage running towards the exit, trying to get away.

"Stop her!" the crew member yelled. Two more crew members easily caught up to her and "apprehended" her. She put up a struggle, trying to escape their grasps, yelling the entire time she was "taken away". The rest of the actors and crew members followed after them.

After a few minutes, the crew members and actors returned to the stage. "Thank you for joining us tonight!" The cast and crew were introduced and they all linked hands, doing a group bow. Everyone in the room stood up, clapping for their wonderful performance. Alice and Emmett were both sporting the same smirk that said, "We knew it the entire time." They were definitely two of a kind.

Dessert came and Emmett, being Emmett, indulged in our leftovers complaining that the portions here weren't Emmett sized. I swear that guy's stomach is depthless. We sat and talked for a little longer.

Renée pulled out the Cruise Compass and flipped to the back where all the activities were listed. She saw that at 10:30, The Love and Marriage Game Show was being held. "That sounds like so much fun!" she exclaimed, reminding me of Alice. She asked Carlisle and Esme if they wanted to join her and Charlie and, of course, they agreed. Carlisle and Charlie just looked at their wives with adoration.

The four of them left soon after, leaving us kids to decide what we were going to do. Alice was pushing to go to the Dungeon to go dancing. I didn't want to go, for obvious reasons. At the mention of 'club', I noticed Edward stiffened a little in his seat. He quickly relaxed and said to Alice, "Ali, why don't the four of you go? Bella doesn't really like dancing and you remember what happened in Florida."

Alice seemed to remember what happened because she quickly shot him a knowing look and told Edward and I to "have fun!" before she pulled Jasper out of his seat, followed by Rose and Emmett.

"What would you like to do, Love?" Edward asked as he nuzzled his head into the crook of my neck.

"Do you have the Cruise Compass?" He pulled the folded papers out of his pocket, handed them to me and began reading over my shoulder. "I bet you anything that Alice is going to want to go to the Mardi Gras Parade," I said with a laugh. "I could just see it now."

"I think you're right. She loves the party scene." Edward seemed to see something he liked and wanted to do because, the next thing I knew, he was standing up and pulling me with him.

"Where are we going?" I asked, struggling to keep pace with his amazingly long legs.

"It's a surprise," he looked back at me with a sly smile.

I groaned, "Have I told you how much I hate surprises?" He just laughed and kept pulling me through the ship. We got to the stairs and, apparently, I wasn't going fast enough for him because he scooped me up with ease, threw me over his shoulder, and started descending the stairs, two at a time. It took me by surprise and I screamed, "Edward! Put me down!" I flailed my legs in an attempt to escape.

"Bella, relax. I won't drop you." I had to admit, the view wasn't half bad. He kept running through the halls until we reached our room. Without hesitating, he reached in his pocket and pulled out his room key. He pushed through the door and, only then, did he put me back on my own two feet. He ran into the closet and threw some more casual clothes at me. "Here, throw these on." I complied, wondering what we were going to do. I looked at the clothes he had picked out and was pleasantly surprised. In my hands were my favorite pair of black shorts and my royal blue three-quarter sleeve shirt. _Good taste._

**EPOV**

After I threw Bella's clothes at her, I grabbed my dark wash jeans and a black long sleeve button down shirt, rolling the sleeves up to my elbows. Bella was still in the bathroom when I emerged from the closet. I went over to the vanity to make sure my hair still looked decent. After fixing a few stray pieces, I heard the bathroom door open. Bella walked out looking as beautiful as ever. "You look beautiful," I said as I wrapped my arms around her."

She returned the embrace, "Thanks, you don't look too bad yourself." Her hands came up to my hair and she started to run her fingers through it.

It felt good, but I pulled away not wanting her to mess it up anymore than she already had. "Bella," I whined, "I just fixed my hair and now you go and mess it up again."

Bella leaned up and gently kissed my lips. "I like your hair messy. It suits you better." She continued running her fingers through my hair. I sighed and let her continue until she felt it had just the right amount of "sex appeal" as she so bluntly put it, with a blush.

We were out the door, once again, in a flash. She warned me not to pick her up again, and I complied. Instead, I grabbed her hand and led her down the stairs, too impatient to wait for the elevators. We reached Deck 3 and I started looking for the backdrops that were to be set up. I spotted the perfect one for us and walked up to the photographer, Bella following behind me. "Edward, please tell me we're not doing what I think we're doing."

"If you mean taking pictures, then yes, we are doing that." I turned around when she started pleading with me that she wasn't photogenic. "Isabella Marie Swan, you are beautiful." I said, running my thumbs over her cheeks. "Do not delude yourself into thinking that you are not. Please, do this for me. I want a few mementos to remember where we first met." I tried looking at her through my lashes again and it seemed to work. She consented, saying that I "owed her big time." I would gladly take that any day.

"Good evening!" the photographer greeted. "Would you like to take some pictures?" he asked.

We agreed, grudgingly on Bella's part, and he led us to a plain white background. He set us up for the first pose. He had me sitting on a low box while Bella was sitting in my lap, our foreheads touching. Bella looked uncomfortable still, so I began rubbing soothing circles on her back. "Relax, Love," I whispered. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes. As she exhaled, she looked into my eyes and I was reminded of why I fell in love with her. I wanted to tell her right then, but I didn't feel it was the right time.

"Okay, now, you," he pointed to me, "stay on the box and you," he pointed to Bella, "sit between his legs." We switched our positions and he pointed to me again, "Wrap your arms around her."

_Gladly_, I thought to myself. I wrapped my arms around Bella as the photographer had said. Bella seemed to be more comfortable as she leaned back into me. He took a few shots of us in this position before he ordered us into a new position. He told me to stand in front of the box and Bella was to be standing on the box with her arms wrapped around my neck. He told us to look at each other, and so we did. I think it's safe to say that I wasn't the only one to get lost in someone's eyes. Bella smiled and it was infectious. I smiled right back and couldn't help but hear all the whispers of admiration from the people passing by. They were saying things like, "Look at how in love they are." Oh, they had no idea.

After a few shots of that pose, the photographer removed the box and told Bella and me to stand chest to chest and have our foreheads touching. By this point, Bella had completely relaxed and it seemed like she didn't care who saw us. Right now, it was just me and her. _God, how I loved this woman._

The final pose was pretty much the same as the previous one, but I was to kiss her forehead. If I had it my way, I would spend all my free time kissing Bella. I softly pressed my lips to her skin and felt that familiar jolt shoot through my body. Bella's eyes closed at the contact, a small smile playing on her lips.

The photographer shot the last few frames and told us that the photos would be placed in the photo gallery on the same deck by tomorrow morning. I couldn't wait to see the final product. We thanked the guy and I left him a nice tip in return. I had another idea and began leading Bella back towards the stairs.

"Where are we going?" she asked as we were climbing the stairs once again.

"Just one more stop, Love. I promise." Once we made it back up to Deck 10, I went for Carlisle and Esme's room. Bella seemed confused. "Do you trust me?" I asked her.

"With my life," she responded.

I opened the door with the extra key they had given me. The room was dark, so I only turned on one of the lights so I could see where I was going. We walked to the piano and I sat down at the bench, pulling Bella down next to me. I stroked the keys lightly and began playing Esme's favorite. Bella seemed to like it earlier, so it seemed right to start off with it.

Once I hit the last key, I immediately started playing Bella's lullaby. I finished that one and began one final song, singing along. This is it, it's now or never.

_Sure I know you'd like to have me  
Talk about my future  
And a million words or so to fill you in about my past  
Have I sisters or a brother  
When's my birthday how's my mother  
Well my dear in time I'll answer all those things you ask_

But for now I'll just say I love you  
Nothing more seems important somehow  
And tomorrow can wait come whatever  
Let me love you forever but right now  
Right now

Some fine day when we go walking  
We'll take time for idle talking  
Sharing every feeling as we watch each other smile  
I'll hold your hand you'll hold my hand  
We'll say things we never had planned  
Then we'll get to know each other in a little while

But for now let me say I love you  
Later on there'll be time for so much more  
But for now meaning now and forever  
Let me kiss you my darling then once more  
Once more

But for now let me say I love you  
Later on I must know much more of you  
But for now here and now how I love you  
As you are in my arms I love you  
I love you  
I love you

I turned to Bella once I hit the last key and looked at Bella, who had silent tears running down her cheeks. "Bella," I hesitantly said, "I love you."

**A/N: Thanks for reading. The mystery dinner doesn't really sound fun but it really is so if you get a chance to do one, take up the opportunity. The song in this chapter was "But For Now" by Jamie Cullum, we saw him in concert 3 years ago and it was amazing!! I absolutely love Alice and Emmett in this chapter, I couldn't stop laughing as I read over it! There are quotes in here people, and nobody acknowledges them, we're feeling hurt ******** just kidding. She just had to bring the Madras back, it's her favorite drink. If you're ever in Southern California, find a Miguel's and order one, they taste so good and they're fruity! The Love and Marriage Game Show is also fun. I don't know about all of you, but I wouldn't mind seeing the backside of Edward/Rob. ****до свидания!!**


	15. Lullaby

Ch. 14: Lullaby

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean.**

**A/N: Hey guys! Sorry for the delay, but life has been really crazy lately. Stupid pre-cal teachers. Thank you to canibeyourmemory, ****CLH83, bluewolfeyes, lauren loves spunky, icefang7, ****tkeaton1, mfrancesj, and hopelessromantic09's twin,**** hgbkwrm cause it ain't June and it ain't the Plaza.**

**BPOV**

As Edward finished playing the last song, I had tears streaming down my cheeks. I couldn't have been happier than I was in that moment.

Apparently, I was wrong. He turned to me and said the words I never thought I would hear him say: "Bella, I love you." He gently placed both of his hands on the sides of my face and captured my lips in a kiss that was so filled with passion, it was palpable.

"I love you, too," I managed to squeak out as I broke away from the kiss. His smile went from ear to ear and took my breath away. He, once again, captured my lips as he wrapped his strong arms around me, pulling me impossibly closer to his body.

"Awww! How sweet? My little boy's all grown up."

Edward tore himself away from me so fast that he fell off the piano bench, landing on the floor with a thud. I looked towards the door and found Carlisle and Esme standing by, both with goofy grins on their faces. I blushed and turned away, looking down at the floor at Edward. "Are you ok?" I asked as I held a hand out to help him up.

He extended his arms before saying, "Yeah, I'm fine." He turned to his parents, "What are you two doing here?"

"In case you forgot, this is our room," Carlisle said with a chuckle.

Edward did seem to forget, "Oh, yeah." He entwined our fingers and looked around nervously before saying, "Well, we better get back to our room." _Oh shit._ "I-I m-mean," he cleared his throat before continuing, "I mean I'm going to walk Bella back to her room."

"Sweetie, relax. Your father and I know that you two are sharing a room." Esme said in an all-knowing tone.

"You do?" Edward and I asked in unison.

"Of course we do. You two aren't as sneaky as you thought."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"We saw you two going into the same room one night and coming out at the same time the next morning. Mother's intuition also helps." Esme looked at Edward

"Why are you not yelling at us?" Edward asked, dumbfounded.

"We trust you. We know you never did anything more than kiss with Tanya, and we raised you to make the right decisions. We know you wouldn't do anything stupid," Carlisle answered.

"You better get back to your room before Charlie and Renée come up and find you in the hallway going into the same room," Esme warned.

Edward released my hand to hug his mother, "Thanks, Mom."

"Anytime, Sweetie. I love you."

"Love you, too." After hugging Esme, Edward went up to Carlisle and gave him a guy hug. "Thanks, Dad."

Esme surprised me by giving me a hug. "I'm so happy he found you," she whispered in my ear.

_Me too_, I thought. Carlisle also gave me a hug before Edward led me out of their room and down the hall to our room.

"That's almost everyone," I commented as I went into the closet to grab my pajamas.

"I just hope that if your dad finds out, he won't kill me. I'm not worried about Renée; she'll probably be just as happy as Carlisle and Esme are."

"Charlie won't kill you if he knows that you're not going to do what Jake did to me."

Edward opened his arms, "Come here." I went over to him on the bed and snuggled up into his side. "Bella, I would never hurt you. I would rather hurt myself before I did anything that might cause you pain. I love you."

"I love you, too." I felt his lips on my hair and sighed before getting up to take my shower.

As I showered, the magnitude of what had happened tonight hit me. I loved Edward and, for some insane reason, he loved me back. I knew that Edward would never do anything to hurt me because I felt the love he had for me. When I was with Jake, the only feeling he exuded was lust and I stupidly mistook it for love. Now that I had the real thing, I couldn't believe how stupid I had been thinking that Jake and I loved each other.

I finished getting ready for bed and went back out into the room. I smiled at the sight before me. Edward was on "his" side of the bed, clutching my pillow tightly to his chest. I crawled up beside him and attempted to extract my pillow from his grasp. He was stronger than I thought, hugging the pillow even tighter to his chest, so I quickly gave up and went back to the closet to grab an extra pillow. Of course, me being me, it wasn't that simple. The room was dark and I managed to stub my toe on the wall and nearly face plant into the floor after tripping over some unknown object. I managed to return to the bed without any major injuries. I tried, once again to unlatch his arms so I could wrap them around me, but he still wasn't budging, so I got as close to Edward as I could and leaned up to kiss his nose. "I love you," I murmured before I fell into a blissful slumber.

Slowly, I came to consciousness as I felt soft kisses running along my jaw line. "Good morning, Love," Edward said against my skin as he saw my eyes flutter open.

"Hi," I breathed. I remembered last night and how he fell asleep with the pillow in his arms, so I decided to have a little fun. "So now you want me?"

He stopped his kisses and looked at me with confusion. "I do and will always want you. What would make you think any different?"

Edward still seemed confused, so I elaborated. "Last night you fell asleep with my pillow crushed against your chest. I was beginning to think you would rather sleep with my pillow than me after you wouldn't release your death grip on the poor thing."

Recognition flashed across his glorious face before he spoke, "I'm sorry, Love. I was just really tired and you were still in the shower, so I grabbed your pillow to see if it would help me fall asleep. I guess it worked."

"Why my pillow?"

He seemed a little embarrassed, "It smells like you. I can't really explain it, but your scent calms me."

I knew exactly what he was talking about. "I know exactly what you mean. Your scent calms me as well," I admitted.

"Well, that's one more thing we have in common." Edward kissed me tenderly, "I really am sorry. Never doubt that I would rather have you in my arms than some ratty, old pillow."

"I love you," I said as I wrapped my arms around his muscular body.

"And I love you." He softly kissed my forehead as he said this.

"What's on the agenda today, Romeo?"

"I called Esme before I woke you up and she said that the rest of my family was going on the ATV Experience. I asked if she knew what your parents were doing and she said they mentioned something about going on a Fishing Adventure Tour."

"That sounds about right, knowing Charlie. So if our families are doing different things, what are we going to do?"

"First, we're meeting everyone down in the dining room. And," he looked at his phone to check the time, "if we don't leave in ten minutes, Alice is going to come and 'wake your ass up'. Those are her words, not mine."

"Alright, alright, I'm up." I got out of bed and went to the closet and realized I didn't know what we were going to do to know what to wear. "Edward?" I called.

"Yeah," he answered, sounding distracted.

"Can you tell me what we're going to do so I know what to wear?"

He poked his head in the door as I held it open, "Not a chance. But, I can tell you that you need to wear your swimsuit. You can wear anything over it."

"Could you be any more cryptic?"

"I could try."

"Smart ass."

"But you love me for it," he responded with a cocky smirk.

"Yes, I do. Now, get out so I can change." I pushed his head out the door and shut it.

"Love you, too!" he called through the closed door.

I threw on my swimsuit and a pair of shorts and a tank top over it. I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and attempt to tame my uncooperative hair. Surprisingly, I didn't have too hard of a time getting my hair to cooperate.

After I deemed myself decent, I walked back out to the room. "Done."

"Just in time, too. Let's hurry before Alice decides to jump the gun."

**EPOV**

I led Bella out of the room, hand-in-hand. We did our routine check down the hallway and, after declaring the coast clear, went down to the dining room.

It wasn't hard finding where everyone was sitting. All we had to do was follow the sound of Emmett's booming voice.

The first thing I noticed was Charlie, once again, glaring at me. I noticed that Bella shot him a glare of her own and, as soon as he saw, he cast his gaze down to the napkin in his lap. She sighed and shook her head as I squeezed her hand in encouragement.

We took our seats between Emmett and Alice. _Joy_.

I braced myself for the questioning that was about to take place and wasn't surprised when Emmett asked, "So, how's the lady friend?" _I'm going to kill Jasper for starting that._

"Why can't you just call her Bella?"

"Because 'lady friend' is more fun. Now, stop avoiding the question. How are things between you and _Bella_?" He emphasized her name with a roll of his eyes.

"Thank you. And, we're good, just like the other times you've asked."

"You still haven't done the dirty deed yet, have you?"

"Emmett, my sex life is none of your business. If you must know, no, we haven't."

I tuned him out and listened to bits and pieces of everyone else's conversations. Charlie was talking to my dad about the fishing trip he and Renée were going on today. Esme and Renée were reminiscing about our childhoods and how "their babies are all grown up." Jasper and Emmett were in deep conversation about God knows what. Alice and Rosalie had sucked Bella into talk about their plans for college. I was surprised to hear that Bella had decided University of Washington. _Shit!_ I was planning on going to Dartmouth in the fall. I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind and decided to enjoy the time we had together. We would pull through. I would be committed to her, no matter what life decided to throw at us.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, I was just thinking. We'll talk about it later," I promised.

"Okay," she agreed with a tight smile.

Breakfast was definitely a loud event. Between Emmett's naturally booming voice and Alice being excited, which led to her voice becoming louder, it was hard to think. Bella was laughing and seemed to be enjoying herself without a care in the world. She was so beautiful when she laughed and I couldn't wait to spend the day with her, uninterrupted.

This morning after I had found out what our families' plans were, I booked our excursion. When Bella had asked me what we were doing, I very nearly told her. The power she held over me was astonishing. I held steadfast, though and denied her the satisfaction. I wanted this breakfast to end so I could snatch her up and run her to our destination as soon as possible.

Charlie and Renée stood up, saying they had to leave to get to the bus that would take them to the boat. Bella gave them each a hug before they left. I barely heard Charlie warn Bella about me and tell her to be careful. I admired how much he cared for her, but I just wished he would give me a little more credit. The rest of my family stayed because they didn't have to leave until 12:30. Soon after Bella's parents left, I said, "We should get going soon. We don't want to be late."

We said goodbye to the rest of my family and walked down the remaining flights of stairs to the gangway on Deck 1. Once we stepped off the ship, we were bombarded by photographers wanting to take our pictures. Bella and I posed for one guy and continued on our way.

**A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing. This chapter is really fluffy and we know that but just trust us. There is no quote and the song that was on repeat while writing this chapter was "Lullaby" by The Spill Canvas. No long a/ns because we are getting ready to leave to pick up our Twilight DVDs!!! Numbers 10 and 11!!!! Woo-hoo!!! It'll be a while until our next update, so enjoy! Okay, so bye. **


	16. Everything

Ch. 15: Everything

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean. **

**A/N: Hello peeps! Thanks for reading and reviewing. So sorry for the delay but in all fairness, we told you it would be awhile till the next update. Thanks for the author alerts, story alerts, favorite authors, favorite stories, and reviews. A huge thank you to hgbkwrm and canibeyourmemory for allowing us to bounce ideas off of them. There isn't a quote in this chapter again so for the next two chapters we'll put two in each. Another thanks to everybody else who reviewed, there are too many to list. Please read the bottom a/n because we have an important message for all of our lovely readers. **

**EPOV**

As I led Bella to the tour group, I covered her eyes with my hands to prevent her from seeing the sign. "What did you do that for?" she asked while trying to remove my fingers from her eyes.

"I still want this to be surprised and if you see the sign, it defeats the purpose. Humor me."

She huffed, "You're lucky you're so cute."

I messed with her a little bit by softly placing my lips at the hollow beneath her ear. She shivered and nearly collapsed into my arms. "Careful, Love. We don't want to make a trip to the hospital.

"I can't control how my body reacts to you."

"And how would that be?" I whispered into her ear, testing the waters.

I heard her breathing become more ragged and I could've sworn I felt her heart pick up pace. I smiled in triumph. She must've known I heard and felt her reaction, "Need I say more?" I just chuckled.

After what seemed like eternity, we were finally boarding the boat that would take us to the island of Anguilla. I made sure the sign was no longer visible and uncovered Bella's eyes and took her hand in mine. We walked a short distance to the boat. There was a guy standing by the stairs leading onto the boat helping the passengers onboard. He took one look at my Bella and started scanning her body. I didn't like the way he was looking at her and felt a low growl emit from me. Bella must've heard because she looked at me out of the corner of her eye. I didn't tear my gaze away from the guy. When it was our turn to get in the boat, I lithely hopped in first before turning around and picking Bella up and bringing her in. There was no way in hell I was going to let that scumbag touch her. We found a seat next to another young couple and settled in for the short trip.

"Someone has a little green monster," Bella sang.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Of course you do. You growled at the guy by the stairs. That has to constitute for some level of jealousy."

She had me there and she knew it. "Did you not see the way he was looking at you? He was a pervert!"

"Why would he be looking at me? I'm nothing special, I'm utterly plain." She shrugged her shoulders, like it was no big deal, and concentrated on a loose thread on her top.

"How could you be so blind? You are beautiful. I don't know how many times I'll have to tell you before you start believing it, but you are." I pulled her onto my lap as the boat pulled away from the dock. There was a gentle breeze that created small white caps on the water's surface. It was beautiful, just like my Bella. She didn't argue any further and snuggled deeper into my chest.

As we were sailing on the water, the mountains and coastline of St. Maarten were visible. It was a spectacular sight to behold. Bella and I spent the remaining part of the hour-long boat trip making small talk and sneaking kisses here and there. Time flew by fast and, soon enough, we arrived at Anguilla. The group debarked from the boat and was led to buses that would take us to the facility. I wasn't about to let the guy touch Bella, so I lifted her out of the boat before stepping out behind her. The guy received a menacing glare from me and it pleased me when he looked a little scared. I was extremely excited to see how Bella would react to what we were about to do, but also worried for fear of her not enjoying what I had planned. Bella and I found seats in the back of the bus. She laid her head on my shoulder as I wrapped my arm around her. The scent of her strawberry shampoo was intoxicating and I was drenched in it. I wouldn't have it any other way.

We spent the fifteen minute bus ride in a comfortable silence. Every now and then, I would lean down and kiss the top of her hair and most of the time, it was unconsciously. We arrived and I could tell Bella was nervous but excited at the same time. I stood up and held my hand out to help her out of her seat. The group was gathered in a loose circle in front of the facility. The instructors came out through the doors. "Good morning, everyone! How's everyone doing?" The group responded with various answers and they continued their little speech. "After we give you guys a few rules to follow while you are in the water with the dolphins, we will split you up into groups."

Bella looked up at me when the woman said dolphin. "Dolphins? Are we going to be swimming with them?" She asked with a gleam of hope sparkling in her eyes. I merely nodded and I couldn't have wiped the smile off of her face if I tried. "I've always wanted to do that, but there aren't many places in Washington where you can." I loved seeing my Bella happy and it satisfied me knowing that I could do that for her.

"One group will be spending a half hour in the water with the dolphins and their exciting behaviors. The rest of the people will head down to the beach on Meads Bay. We will be rotating the groups, so be sure to meet by the pool entrance a couple of minutes before your scheduled time. After everyone has had a chance with the dolphins, we will be having a buffet style lunch with Caribbean style Bar-B-Que." At that point, we were divided up into groups of ten. Bella and I were in the first group with the dolphins. She resembled Alice with her excitement. I very nearly had to hold her down, she was vibrating so much.

Once the groups were split off, our group was led to the changing rooms to change into the wetsuits. I came out before Bella did and when she did, she looked cute. The black material hugged her every curve. She was barefoot and her hair was cascading down her back in soft waves. She spotted me and walked over. I opened up my arms for her and she didn't hesitate to enter my embrace, wrapping her own arms around me. "Do you honestly like your surprise?"

"Edward, I love it. How could I not? Like I said, I've always wanted to swim with dolphins but I've never had the chance."

"Well then, I'm glad I've been able to fulfill that dream." I bent down to touch her lips with mine. Everyone was out of the changing rooms and the woman led us to the pool. There were a couple of trainers already in the water with the dolphins lined up in front of them.

"Okay, everyone, carefully," I looked at Bella and she scowled in response, "get in the water and line up along the wall." We did as she said and I made sure that Bella didn't have one of her moments and trip. I was pleasantly surprised when she managed it without incident. I followed and the remaining few people got in after me. Bella laced her fingers with mine under the water. I brought our joined hands up and kissed her knuckles. She blushed and turned her attention to the trainer. "We have five of our dolphins here with us today. Starting from the left, we have Timmy, Jimmy, Suzie, Billy, and Sally." As each of the dolphins was introduced, the trainers had them "wave". Bella giggled and I immersed myself in the sound. I had brought along my digital waterproof camera and snapped a picture of my Bella completely free of any troubles.

We were each given a chance to have the dolphins perform a trick. When it was Bella's turn, the trainer told her to wave her hand like she was saying goodbye. When she did that, two of the dolphins took off to the other side of the pool and disappeared under the water's surface. They both jumped up at the same time and did "somersaults" with their noses nearly touching their tails. Bella gasped and looked at me, her smile from ear to ear. They returned to their spots in front of her, awaiting their treat. Touching the fish was definitely her least favorite part. She wrinkled her little nose and quickly disposed of it into the dolphins' gaping mouths.

I was up next. The trainer had me go deeper into the water. She told me that as Jimmy came by, I was to grab his dorsal fin and hang on. I waited for Jimmy to get close enough and grabbed on, only to be dragged across the pool. It was exhilarating to say the least. How many people get to say they got to "ride a dolphin"? Jimmy took me back to in front of the group and I saw Bella with my camera in front of her face. I stood next to Bella as she exclaimed, "You looked pro doing that! It looked like so much fun!"

"It was." I bent down once again to place my lips to hers. Her taste was mixed with chlorine, but I didn't care. The rest of our group finished. The trainer announced that we would each be able to "kiss the dolphin". A picture would be taken and it would be available to purchase. One by one, our group received their kisses. Bella kissed Billy and I kissed Suzie. "I hope I'm not being replaced by a dolphin," I joked as the rest of the group finished up.

"I don't know, he was almost as good a kisser as you are. I think I might need another kiss to determine who the winner is." _That little vixen! _I gladly obliged, giving Bella one of the most passionate, yet chaste kisses I could manage. I pulled away and touched my forehead to hers. Bella was breathless, her eyes hooded with lust.

"How was that?" I asked with a cocky smirk.

"Okay, you win. You, Edward Cullen, are the best kisser."

We finished up with a little goodbye and got out of the water. We changed back into our clothes and went inside to look at the pictures that were taken. As I looked through the pictures and came across the ones of Bella and me, I couldn't help but smile at how happy we both looked. We were grinning like idiots and the love we held for each other was clearly visible in every picture. I decided to buy all of them, much to Bella's dismay. She said they were too expensive, but I told her there was no price for love.

**BPOV**

After completing the transaction, Edward laced his fingers with my own and led me down to the beach. He seemed a little tense at breakfast, but I didn't push it when he said we would talk about it later. I guess later meant now. "Bella, what are your plans for college?" he asked me as we walked down the stretch of beach.

It caught me off guard, but I quickly recovered. "Um, I'm going to University of Washington. Why?"

"I'm going to Dartmouth in the fall," he responded solemnly. "That's three thousand miles away."

My heart broke into a million pieces at his words. How could we continue our relationship with each of us on the different coasts and twelve states between us?" I felt the hot tears prickling my eyes as I realized what he was trying to say. I tore my hand from his and wrapped my arms around my torso in an attempt to keep myself together in one piece.

"Bella, come here," Edward called softly. I ignored him and sunk to the ground, the tears flowing freely. I felt him wrap his arms tightly around me. I tried, to no avail, to tear from his grasp as the sobs wracked my body. Edward wasn't having that. "I'm sorry, Bella. I didn't mean to upset you."

"Why are you sorry? I understand you want to break up with me. Just don't make it any harder than it is." I managed to get that out without much interruption from my sobs.

"What?! Bella, I don't want to break up with you."

"You don't?" I sniffled as I looked up at him through bleary eyes.

"No. God, Bella, I could never leave you. You mean everything to me. It would physically hurt me to not have you in my life. You make me feel complete in every way imaginable. You are the sweetest, most caring person I have ever met. I don't know what I ever did to deserve an angel like you, but whatever it was, I'm glad I did it. I love you with every fiber in my being and nothing could ever change that. If anything, my love for you would only grow. I love you so much." He whispered the last part and sealed it with a kiss to my forehead. His speech made me feel horrible for ever doubting him.

"I love you, too. So much, it hurts," I confessed.

"Believe me when I say I know what you mean. I was merely pointing out that there will be three thousand miles between us. I am more than willing to make this work and continue loving you. There will be many bumps in the road, but we will work through them."

"Together."

"Forever."

**A/N: Thanks for reading. We never did the dolphin discovery swim so we don't know what it entails so we just took the details from the brochure. As you noticed there are no song lyrics in the chapter, we're trying this new thing where we don't put the lyrics in and just mention the song titles. The song for this chapter was "Everything" by Michael Bublé. So, we had a new idea for a story and wanted to know what you guys thought about it. Basically, Edward is a two-faced cocky ass bastard. He is a pro baseball player for the Angels along with Emmett and Jasper. Bella, Alice, and Rose are college students. Alice wins a contest to do a meet and greet with three of the players. Again, we know the destination but not the journey that's going to take us there. What do you guys think? Thanks again. Bye!**


	17. Angels

Ch. 16: Angels

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean. **

**A/N: Hello mi amigos! Again, we're sorry for the late update. Thank you all for the story alerts, author alerts, favorite stories, favorite authors, and reviews. A special thank you to lauren loves spunky, icefang7, sambois, tkeaton1, xXalyssXx, twilightluvr12, CLH83, and bluewolfeyes for reviewing pretty much every chapter. A huge and special thank you to canibeyourmemory and hgbkwrm for letting us bounce ideas off of them again. As promised, there are two quotes in this chapter. **

**BPOV**

I had never given much thought to what would happen after the cruise and Edward and I went to college. I guess I assumed that we would both be going to University of Washington. When Edward had first said that we were going to different schools, I was crushed. After thinking about it, it makes sense that Edward would be going to a prestigious school. I would support him in any way I could and would try my damndest to make our long distance relationship work.

After our talk on the beach, Edward and I had gone back to the group to eat our lunch, which happened to be very delicious. We finished eating and walked up and down the beach, just enjoying each other's company and making small talk. We never brought up the college situation again. We settled what had to be settled and both agreed to live in the moment.

At 1:30, our group had to be back on the boat that would take us back to the cruise ship. I stood at the railing enjoying the crystal clear, blue waters, with Edward standing behind me. Every once in a while, I would feel his lips on my head and each time, I smiled to myself and leaned back into him.

We reached the cruise ship at 3:00. All the passengers had to be onboard by 4:30, so we didn't linger. As Edward and I were walking through the corridors to head back to our room, we heard the distinct boom of Emmett's voice and both looked at each other with curiosity in our expressions. We quickened our pace and, soon enough, stumbled upon Alice, Rosalie, Jasper, and, of course, Emmett.

"Don't talk to me, criminal! Don't talk to me! Whoa, sugar rush." As Emmett said the last part, he dropped his head into his hands.

"What the hell is going on? Why is Emmett accusing someone of being a criminal?" Edward asked, annoyed that we were causing a scene.

Rosalie answered, exasperatedly, "Emmett thinks that Jasper stole his phone."

"I know he stole it! Now, give it back, you thief."

"For the last time, I don't have your fucking phone! You probably just left it in your cabin."

"Why would I do something stupid and idiotic like that? I know you took it and I want it back, NOW!"

"A hundred dollars says that you left your god damn phone in your fucking cabin." Jasper offered.

Emmett stuck out his hand and Jasper took it. "Deal," they said in unison.

I, personally, thought the whole situation was comical. I had no doubt that Jasper was right about Emmett leaving his phone in the cabin.

"We'll go check now," Emmett said, sure he was going to win this bet.

As Emmett and Jasper were arguing, Alice was standing by, knowing the outcome of the bet. She always seemed to know what would happen, but refused to tell anyone.

"Care to see Emmett get his ass handed to him?" Edward asked me.

I shrugged, "Why not?"

He took my hand and we followed Emmett and Jasper to Emmett and Rose's room.

Rose slipped the key into the slot and held the door so Emmett and Jasper could enter first. Emmett began throwing things everywhere, ripping the sheets off the bed and looking under every nook and cranny. Jasper walked to the vanity and picked up a small, silver cell phone.

"I found your phone," he told Emmett as he held it up.

Emmett stopped, mid-throw, and looked at Jasper, seething. "You planted that there!"

"For God's sake, Emmett, why is it so hard for you to believe that you left your phone? It was a mistake and Jasper had nothing to do with it. Build a bridge and get over it," Alice finally spoke.

Emmett stalked over to Jazz and snatched the phone from his hand. "Thank you," he said sarcastically.

"You're welcome. You owe me a hundred dollars," Jasper added with a smirk.

"Fuck," Emmett muttered as he dug in his back pocket for his wallet to fish out the money and handed it to Jazz.

"Thank you. It was a pleasure doing business with you."

Emmett crossed his arms in front of his chest and pouted like a five year old.

"All right, show's over. Everybody get out," Rose said as she ushered us to the door.

Edward led me down the hall to our room. We had decided to take it easy for the rest of the day, so we made plans to watch movies for the rest of the night. We turned on the TV and went to the movies menu. "What do you feel like watching?" Edward asked as he started going through the "New Releases" category.

"I know I don't feel like crying anymore, so how about we watch a comedy?"

"Alright." He went back to the movies page and found the comedy category. We were nearing the end of the list and I still hadn't seen a movie that would capture my interest.

"Wait," I nearly shouted as Edward was just about to go on to the next page. "Let's watch 'Ocean's Eleven'." He selected the movie and dropped the remote onto the table by the bed. We both sunk down into the bed and I snuggled as close as I could into his chest.

I hadn't seen any of the Ocean's movies in a while, but I enjoyed them, so I figured, 'why not?'" I tried to concentrate on the movie, but it was hard when Edward kept distracting me by placing kisses anywhere he could reach. "Not that I don't love your kisses, but I would really like to watch the movie and you are doing a magnificent job of effectively distracting me."

Edward chuckled, "Sorry, Love. I won't distract you anymore." I couldn't be sure, but it almost sounded like he was glad that he only had to do little things to make my body react to him. Although, when you have a Greek god as your boyfriend, it's almost impossible not to react to him.

We finished watching the first movie in the trilogy and moved onto the second one. Edward had stuck to his promise and had not kissed me anymore. Instead, he began running his fingers through my hair, starting at the nape of my neck and running down to my waist.

Two hours later, 'Ocean's Twelve' had finished and Edward and I were just laying in each other's arms, completely content in our comfortable silence. "I think we should start getting ready for dinner, Love," Edward said.

I looked at the clock and saw it was 7:30. "Yeah, we don't want Alice busting in here, pulling us out by our ears."

I thought I felt Edward shudder, "No, we definitely don't. Little Alice is definitely scary when it comes to being somewhere on time."

I reluctantly hopped off the bed and went into the closet to search for an outfit appropriate for dinner. I flipped through the dresses I still had on the hangers. I stopped at the one I deemed "perfect" for tonight. The dress was strapless cotton with a brown floral print. There was a matching belt and a pleat going down the middle front and pockets. I slipped it on and grabbed a pair of brown flats. I made my way into the bathroom to do my hair. I kept it simple by just bringing my bangs back and pinning them with bobby pins. My make up was also kept to a minimum. I lightly brushed gold shadows onto my eyes, lined my eyes with a dark brown liner, coated my lashes with mascara, and used my sheer lip gloss.

I fixed my dress before I stepped out of the bathroom. Edward was just finishing up buttoning his last couple buttons on his red shirt. His hair was disheveled, as always, but that's how I liked it. He noticed me and enveloped me in a hug. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks, Romeo. You look handsome."

"Thank you, Love." I looked up at him and stood on my tiptoes to give him a kiss. I broke the kiss this time, which surprised me, and led him to the door. I performed our customary check in the hallway, now only looking for my parents, specifically my father. I was just about to determine the coast clear when I heard my name from down the hall. "Bells!" my father called.

"Oh shit," Edward and I said together. "Get back in there," I whispered as I pushed Edward back through the door, closing it behind me. Charlie reached me just as I heard the door click shut. "Hey, Dad. How was your fishing trip?"

"It was so much fun. I caught a whole load of fish. I tried teaching your mother how to cast the line properly, but she just couldn't get the hang of it. She seemed to be enjoying herself, though. How were the ATVs with the Cullens?"

I avoided eye contact with him as I answered, "Um, it was…fun."

"Care to elaborate?" he asked, eying me suspiciously.

"Well, we drove along the beach and stopped a few times to take pictures. We had lunch and were able to swim in the ocean." That part, technically, wasn't a lie. "On the way back, we went a completely different way, but it was just as beautiful." I remembered everything that I had read on the pamphlet that had all the excursions available. I was hoping that Charlie would find that sufficient enough and not ask for anything specific.

"You were wearing your helmet, I hope." Of course he had to play the cop card with me.

"Yes, Dad, I wore my helmet."

Charlie started walking down the hallway, "Let's head to dinner."

"But… I… um I forgot something in my room." What I forgot wasn't necessarily something that could easily be hidden.

"What?"

"My phone."

"You don't need your phone." He turned around and continued walking. "What is it with kids these days? They can't go anywhere without their new fangled technology." He mumbled to himself. "Come on, Bells. You can live without your phone for one night." He used his authoritative voice and I had no choice but to comply. I followed him, hoping that Edward would get the hint and come down to the dining room in a few minutes.

**EPOV**

When I had heard Charlie call Bella's name, I panicked. She shoved me back into the room, but I stood by the door, listening to their conversation. He asked about the ATVs and I was hoping to God that Bella's acting skills would be sufficient enough to fool Charlie. From the sound of it, he had bought into her recollection of the afternoon and, for that, I was thankful. Charlie then told Bella to head to the dining room with him. She had said that she forgot her phone, but he told her to leave it. It was actually kind of comical to hear him talk about kids and their "new fangled technology".

I waited a few minutes after I was sure Charlie and Bella had left before I emerged from our room to go to dinner. I checked down the hallway to make sure Charlie wasn't still lingering.

"Edward!" I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sound of Renée's voice.

_Can my night get any worse?_

"Oh, hi Renée." I was so nervous, I felt beads of sweat forming behind my locks of hair.

"What were you doing coming out of Bella's room?"

_Apparently, my night can only get worse_.

"Um, Bella just asked me to get something for her."

"Oh, and what would that be?" she asked, her sculpted eyebrows rising.

"Her phone." Way to go, genius, you don't have her phone.

"Well thank you for retrieving it for her." _What was I, a dog?_

"You're welcome."

"You can just give it to me, and I'll be sure it gets to her."

_Shit! _"Well, you see, I couldn't find her phone, so I was just going to make sure she didn't have it in her purse."

"Bella didn't have a purse with her. Would you mind if I checked in her room? I'm sure I could find it." She emphasized 'her' and I knew I was fucked.

"Um sure." I used my key card to open the room and held the door open for her.

"Can I see that card?" Renée asked, holding her hand out expectantly.

I wordlessly handed it over and she examined it meticulously.

"Tell me, Edward, why does _your_ card work for _Bella's_ room?"

I had a feeling Renée already knew everything, so I decided to tell her the truth. I recounted the whole ordeal with Bella getting placed in the same room as me and how we both tried to get our own rooms, but to no avail.

"I appreciate you telling me the truth for once."

"I'm sorry, but we didn't really want anyone to find out about our situation. That plan didn't work out too well, seeing as how everybody but Charlie now knows." As I said this, a thought occurred to me. "You aren't going to tell him, are you?"

"Of course not, I wouldn't do that to you guys."

I breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you."

"Oh, don't thank me. I'm not going to tell him because you and Bella are going to tell him."

I knew that was too good to be true.

"I hope you can run fast because once he finds out that you and Bella have been sleeping in the same room for the past five days without him knowing, he's going to blow a gasket. He wouldn't even let Jake sleep in the same room as her when they would have sleepovers as little kids."

"Gee, thanks," I said sarcastically. _Seven down, one to go._

She knew that the phone excuse was no longer valid, so she suggested that we go down to the dining room. I followed her down the five flights of stairs and entered the dining room. I looked towards our table and noticed Bella looking around nervously, fidgeting with the napkin in her lap. I pulled out the seat beside her and sat down, saying, "Your mother knows."

Bella froze and looked at me with fear in her eyes. "What happened?" she whispered in a panic.

"She saw me coming out of our room. She asked what I was doing and I told her you asked me to look for your phone." She smiled at that, catching on that I had been listening to her talk with Charlie. "I told her that I couldn't find it and she asked that I open up the room so she could see if she could find it. She picked up on the fact that I used my own card to open the room and told me about Charlie finding out. She's not going to tell him."

"Thank God," Bella breathed a sigh of relief just as I had earlier.

Her smile faltered as I continued, "We have to tell him. She said that I better know how to run fast because Charlie is very protective of you."

"I guess it's only right for him to find out. And, I'd rather have him find out from us than from a third party. We'll tell him in the morning." She rested her head on my shoulder and I wrapped my arm around her shoulder.

After that, dinner passed by in its usual manner. The four adults were holding a conversation and every once in a while, Renée would sneak glances at me. Bella never noticed. She had been sucked into conversation with Rosalie and Alice while I was listening to Jasper and Emmett.

"So I've downloaded a few thousand songs off the internet. Who hasn't? Who hasn't?" Jasper said, throwing his hands up in the air.

Emmett had been calling him a criminal because he was still convinced that Jasper had planted his phone on the desk. Emmett had asked Jasper to confess to all his "criminal activities". Jasper's only offence had been downloading songs off the internet. Emmett didn't believe him.

"That's bullshit. You stole my phone, planted it in my room, and robbed me out of a hundred dollars!" Emmett bellowed.

"Boys! That is enough from the two of you. If I hear one more peep out of either one of you, you will regret the day you were born," Esme warned.

"Yes, Mom," they said, their heads bowed in defeat.

I had to laugh at that.

"That goes for you as well, Edward."

"What? What did I do?"

"Don't go there with me, you know what you did."

"Yes, Mom." Emmett and Jasper both suppressed laughs and I kicked them under the table, glaring at them.

I heard a giggle next to me and looked down to see Bella covering her mouth, attempting to control her laughs.

"And what, may I ask, is so funny, Miss Swan?"

"Nothing, nothing at all."

I playfully glared at her and that sent her into another round of giggles. I sighed and continued with my dinner.

We had finished eating and Bella and I were now back up in our room, curled up on the bed watching the last of the Ocean's movies.

"I have a bad feeling about tomorrow," Bella said absently.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. I can't really explain it, but I think Charlie will make sure we're not in the same room."

I pulled her closer in an effort to calm her down. "Whatever happens tomorrow, always know that I love you and will never be far. I love you." I kissed her lips tenderly and hugged her tight.

"I love you, too."

The movie finished and we drifted off into dreamland.

**A/N: Thanks for reading. The song for this chapter was "Angels" by Within Temptation. We love casino movies apparently. If you haven't seen the Ocean's Trilogy, we highly recommend it to everyone. The updates for this chapter are going to slow down because we are going to alternate updates between this story and our new story, Calling All Angels. Please read it and leave us reviews. As always, we accept comments, criticism, etc. The link to Bella's dress in this chapter will be on our profiles. We really like the dress that she's wearing. Thanks again! T.T.F.N., ta ta for now! **


	18. Angel

Ch. 17: Angel

**A/N: Hello loves!! We hope everyone had a fantastic Easter! We are so sorry for the delay in writing this but we do have lives that we need to live. An elephant size thank you for all the story alerts, author alerts, favorite stories, favorite authors, and reviews. Many thank yous go out to everyone who left us a review, there are just too many to mention now. An insanely big thank you to canibeyourmemory and hgbkwrm for allowing us to constantly bounce ideas off them and reassurance when it was needed. There are two quotes in this chapter so we are all caught up.**

**EPOV**

I'm going to die today. Today, August 17, 2008, Police Chief Charlie Swan was going to murder me, Edward Cullen. I lay in the bed, Bella curled up next to me, still asleep. I was absentmindedly running my fingers through her hair, from the top of her head down to her waist. She sighed and snuggled even closer into my side.

I could hardly sleep last night because I knew that Bella and I had to tell Charlie that we had been sleeping in the same room since the beginning of the trip. Each time I closed my eyes, I could only imagine the different ways Charlie could kill me. I imagined him shooting me with the shotgun, he so clearly possessed. I saw him tossing me off the side of the ship when nobody was looking, effectively drowning me. The absolute worst scenario, in my opinion, was Charlie sticking fishing hooks into me, using me as live bait. The kicker: he was fishing for sharks. That was the last nightmare I had before I decided I couldn't take it anymore. That was – I looked over at the clock, noticing it was now six in the morning - five hours ago.

"Edward?" Bella called softly.

"Yes, Love?"

"What time is it?" She asked groggily, her voice thick with sleep.

_Two hours before my time of death._ "It's six."

"Why are you up so early?"

"I was just thinking."

"What were you thinking about?"

"You." It was partially true. During every nightmare, Bella was standing in the background, silent tears streaming down her face. That was a sight I never wanted to bear witness to.

"What's wrong?" my angel asked, leaning on her elbow of one arm, smoothing out the creases that must have made their way onto my forehead with the hand of the other.

I debated for half a second about whether or not I would tell her about my silly nightmares. I vowed to tell Bella the truth, and I intended to keep that promise. "I was thinking about the different ways your father might decide on how to kill me. I have to say, there were some very creative possibilities."

"Edward, he's not going to kill you." She placed her hand on my chest and I laced my fingers through her delicate ones.

I believed her, and I released a breath I hadn't realized I was holding.

"He just may rough you up a bit. I would never let him kill you. I love you too much." She smiled as she said that and I couldn't help but smile in return.

"Go back to sleep, Love. It's too early for you to be up when we don't have to do anything but be lazy today." I started humming the lullaby I had written for her, in hopes of lulling her back into unconsciousness.

"I'm not tired, honestly." Bella tried to stifle a yawn, but it still escaped her lips.

I had to resist the urge to chuckle. "Sure you're not tired. You just yawned because you're wide awake, right?"

"Exactly," she said as she sunk back into her pillow, or in this case, my chest. I don't know how that could be comfortable, but no matter how many times she started out with her head on an actual pillow, it always seemed to wander to my chest. I was, in no possible way, complaining, I just wanted her to be comfortable. She told me, each time, that I was more comfortable than a pillow any day. I just followed along.

"Uh huh," I replied, disbelievingly. I continued humming her lullaby and, within minutes, my angel was asleep. Our legs were entwined with each other so that we were as close to each other as we could be. Knowing that Bella wouldn't let anything too serious happen to me brought a sense of peace to my wellbeing. I was able to drift back off to sleep for a couple more hours.

After the alarm had woken me up, I gently shook Bella awake. I wanted to tell Charlie as soon as possible and get it out of the way. I took a quick shower and changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Bella was sitting on the edge of the bed, dressed in a pair of denim shorts and a tank top, looking as gorgeous as ever. I sat down next to her and saw that she was watching the news. Without seeming to think about it, Bella laid her head on my shoulder. I kissed the top of her head. "You ready to tell your father, Love?"

"I think the more appropriate question would be, 'are you ready to meet your demise?'" Bella looked up at me, a glimmer of deviousness hinting in her beautiful eyes.

"I-I I thought you said he wasn't going to kill me? What if he does have his gun stashed somewhere in the room? What if-?"

"Relax, Romeo. I was just kidding." She hopped off the bed and skipped over to the door while I sat staring off into space.

"Are you coming, or not?"

I stood up and feigned annoyance, "That wasn't funny, Isabella."

"It was very funny, and you know it."

"Fine, it was a little funny. Better?"

"Much." She grabbed my hand and reached for the door handle. "Come on, we want to catch him before he leaves the room."

"Do we have to? Why can't we just tell him after the cruise is over? What he doesn't know won't hurt him, Right?" It was a futile attempt but, hey, I tried.

"No, we have to tell him. If we don't tell him now and he figures it out on his own, or worse, somebody else tells him, he'll be even more upset."

Bella opened the door, there was no use checking the hallway since everybody, save for Charlie, knew about our predicament. She led me down the hall to her parents' room. She knocked on the door and then dropped my hand. It didn't offend me because I wanted to start off on good terms with Charlie.

A moment later, Charlie opened the door. "Hey, Bells!"

"Hi, Dad." Bella greeted cautiously.

"What's up?"

"Can Edward and I talk to you for a second?"

Charlie must have not noticed me right away because he greeted me callously, "Edward."

"Good morning, Sir." Charlie was glaring at me, but I didn't tear my gaze away from him. I had to show him that I wasn't about to back down.

"Dad?" Bella called to break us out of our staring contest.

"What?" he asked.

"So, can we talk?" Bella already seemed annoyed, so I quickly found her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze before dropping it again. Although, I think I was the one who needed some comforting.

"Oh, yeah. Sure, come on in." He stepped aside and let Bella and me through. We took a seat on the couch, while Charlie sat in the chair across from us. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

I decided to take the reins, "Sir, Bella and I have been sleeping in the same room together." I shrunk back into the couch in anticipation of the wrath that is Charlie Swan.

To my utter surprise, he laughed.

_What?_

"Is that it?"

Bella was hesitant when she answered him. She was, no doubt, expecting what I had been. "Aren't you mad?"

"Well, I'm not happy and I wish that you had told me sooner but, no, I'm not mad."

_I'm going to live!_

**BPOV**

"Did you know?" I asked my father, who, to my surprise, was taking our news fairly well.

Charlie seemed sheepish, "I kind of figured it out when I saw these." He tossed a folder onto the table in front of Edward and me. Edward picked up the folder and opened it. I looked at him and saw a grin slowly spread across his beautiful lips.

"Our pictures," he said, almost in a whisper. I leaned over to see what he was talking about. There, in the folder, were all the pictures that Edward and I had taken a few nights ago. I couldn't help but notice how happy we looked together. In Edward's eyes, I saw all the love and devotion he held for me in his eyes. I felt moisture running down my face and it took me a minute before I realized I was crying. Why? I have no idea. Edward looked over at me and tenderly wiped the tears running down my cheeks.

"Why are you crying, Love?"

"I don't know," I told him honestly. "I guess I just realized the magnitude of our love for each other." The poses reminded me of engagement photos. I remember being so engrossed with Edward that I hardly noticed what was going on around us. My favorite one was the one with Edward kissing my forehead. I saw that photo and could've sworn I felt the electricity that ran through my body when he did that.

I had completely forgotten about Charlie until he cleared his throat, obviously meaning to put some space between Edward and me.

"Where did you get these?" I asked.

"Your mother saw them when we were looking at the pictures. She bought them and was going to give them to you tonight. I guess I beat her to the punch."

"Thank you, Dad."

"No problem. Now, is there anything else you guys are keeping from me?"

"Well, Edward and I are sort of-" I didn't finish before Charlie interrupted.

"OH MY GOD!!! YOU'RE PREGNANT! AREN'T YOU?!" _Why does everybody think that?_ "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU! IT SHOULD TAKE YOU EXACTLY FOUR SECONDS TO CROSS FROM HERE TO THAT DOOR. I'LL GIVE YOU TWO!" When Charlie said that, a look of sheer panic and fear flashed across Edward's face. Charlie was up out of his seat, pacing around the room.

"DAD! Calm down!"

"Why the hell should I when this lowlife moved on to an innocent young girl like my daughter and got her pregnant?!" That was the straw that broke the camel's back. Charlie could criticize me all he wants, but I would not let him do that to Edward. He never did anything to deserve it. I stood up and defended Edward.

"Charlie! Stop this right now!" He knew I was mad because I rarely ever called him Charlie. Once I had his attention, I continued, "I am not pregnant."

"You're not?"

"No. Edward and I have never had sex." Charlie noticeably flinched when I said that. I don't think he was ready to accept that part of my life.

"Oh. Sorry."

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to." Charlie looked confused. _Could he really be that dense?_ I nodded my head towards Edward. "Edward never did anything. You had no right to call him names and accuse him of something that clearly didn't happen."

"Sorry, Edward." I swear, sometimes my dad acted like a five year old.

"It's no problem." Edward was always so gracious, even when people didn't deserve it.

"Anyway, what I was trying to tell you before you blew up on us," I shot Charlie a deadly glare, "was that Edward and I are dating." I could tell that he was about to interrupt again, but I stopped him before he could make a sound. "Edward and I are together and there is nothing you can do to change that. I love him, Daddy." My voice was merely a whisper at the last sentence. I hadn't noticed, but Edward was now standing behind me. His arms were wrapped around my waist, and I leaned into his warm embrace.

Charlie mulled over all the information I dumped on him. He was quiet for, what seemed like hours, but was really, only minutes, before he spoke. "I know you do, Bells."

That was not what I was expecting him to say. "You do?"

"Of course I know. What kind of father would I be if I didn't realize who my daughter loves?"

_A normal one_, I thought.

"I see the way you look at each other at dinner. The secret glances, the unseen touches. They're all things your mother and I do, more so when we were younger." I laughed at my dad's attempt at humor. I felt Edward let out a chuckle of his own behind me.

Charlie looked behind me at Edward and his tone changed to one of seriousness. "If you ever hurt my baby girl, I will kill you."

"Dad," I rolled my eyes. I thought we were past this stage.

"Yes, Sir. I wouldn't have it any other way. I have no intentions of ever hurting her." Edward's arms tightened around my torso.

"Good, I'm glad we have an understanding."

The three of us stayed and talked for a little bit before Edward decided we had to do something besides sitting in a cabin all day. "You ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah." We all stood up. I walked over to Charlie and wrapped my arms around his waist. He wasn't one to show much affection, so it surprised me when he returned the gesture.

"I love you, Sweetie."

"I know, Daddy. I love you, too." I whispered into his chest. I grabbed the pictures off the table and followed Edward to the door.

Charlie walked Edward and me to the door. "Take care of my baby girl!" Charlie called out to us as we walked down the hallway to the elevators.

Edward stopped me and turned around, answering Charlie's request. "I will, Sir." With that, Charlie shut the door and Edward and I continued on with our day.

**A/N: We hope you enjoyed that. We know it's short but we felt it was a good ending point for now. The song for this chapter is Angel by Jack Johnson, short but cute. OME!! Tuesday was JillMH's birthday and we saw **_**How to Be **_**and it was so good!!!! It was totally worth the wait and the cold. We highly recommend you guys see it, you won't be disappointed. For those of you who are following Calling All Angels, I believe we will begin writing again soon. Reviews are greatly appreciated. We read and respond to every review so please leave us some. Thanks again! Till next time! **


	19. Time Is Running Out

Ch. 18: Time Is Running Out

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight, Royal Caribbean, Nicole Miller, or Kitson. But we do own the How To Be soundtrack! **

**A/N: Hey everyone. We are so sorry this took forever to get out but we've been crazy busy. Thanks a million for the story/author alerts, favorite stories/authors, and reviews. A big thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter, you guys make us so happy. The quotes in the last chapter were "****It should take you exactly four seconds to cross from here to that door. I'll give you two." From Breakfast at Tiffany's. The second quote was "…moved on to an innocent young girl like my daughter…" from Dirty Dancing. Congrats to everyone who guessed correctly, you get a cookie.**

**EPOV**

After telling Charlie, I felt so much better because Bella and I didn't have to hide our love for each other anymore. As Bella and I were walking down the hallway towards the stairs, I wrapped my arm around her without worrying about being caught. I felt so liberated. The whole experience was surreal. I would have bet anything that Charlie was going to castrate me once Bella and I told him. I was actually surprised at how well he took it. I definitely had more respect for him and I wouldn't ever break my promise of taking care of Bella.

I looked down at Bella and noticed she was smiling at the pictures Charlie had given us. "Beautiful," I murmured into her hair. I was rewarded with Bella's signature blush slowly creeping up her face.

"I know you are."

I chuckled at her absurdness. "Silly Bella, I was talking about you."

The blush on her cheeks deepened as she turned her head into my chest. "How did I get so lucky?" she mumbled into my shirt as we walked into the dining room. The host recognized us and began leading us to a table.

"I believe the correct question would be 'how did _I_ get so lucky?' You are far too good for me, Bella. I don't deserve you."

Bella surprised me by yanking on my arm, effectively stopping me in my tracks. "Edward Anthony Masen Cullen, don't you dare say that! You have done nothing wrong. I forgave you long ago about the incident at the airport. I love you and there is absolutely nothing you can do about that. I don't want anybody else." She whispered the last part as she stared deep into my eyes.

"I'm sorry, Love. You know I love you. How could I not, sweet and forgiving as you are?" I bent down to touch my lips to hers. People were staring at us, but I didn't give a fuck. I broke the kiss before it could get too heated and leaned my forehead against hers.

"I love you," we both said at the same time, making us both smile at each other.

The host cleared his throat to get our attention. I looked up behind me and saw the small smile tugging at his lips. "Right this way please." He continued walking, Bella and I following with her hand clasped tightly in mine.

We rounded the corner and saw that the rest of our families were there, minus Charlie. Alice came running up to Bella and engulfed her in a hug. "I'm so glad you told Charlie about you and Edward!"

"Thank you for keeping your promise, Alice. I owe you big time." Bella stiffened at her own words and it scared me.

"Bella?" I asked. "Are you all ri-"

I was interrupted by an ear splitting squeal so loud, I had to cover my ears. "Oh, Bella, we're going to have so much fun! We can go down to the shops and get some new outfits. Oh! And we can go to the spa and get massages, manicures, and pedicures." I couldn't believe it, but Alice managed to get all that out in one breath.

"Alice, please. I'll do anything besides that. I think you know by now how much I hate shopping."

_Oh no._

"But Bella, please?" Alice's expression was heartbreaking. She had her bottom lip jutted out in the most pitiful pout and it seemed like her eyes were glistening with unshed tears.

"Ali! Why do you do this to me?"

Alice's expression turned from one of heartbreak to one of unmasked joy in 0.2 seconds. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I promise, Bella, you won't regret it!" Alice skipped back to the table and sat down next to Rosalie, no doubt discussing the torture they were going to inflict on my Bella.

Bella buried her face into my chest and mumbled, "What have I gotten myself into?"

I chuckled and wrapped my arms securely around her, "I don't know, but I'm sure it won't be too bad."

"Edward, you should know better than anyone what Alice is capable of, she's your sister. I'm just too nice for my own good, huh?"

"You just don't like to hurt anybody, Love. Don't beat yourself up over it. Come on, you're going to need all the energy possible to keep up with Alice." I led her over to the table and sat next to Jasper, Bella next to Alice.

"You owe me one hundred bucks," Jasper said to Emmett.

"Fine," Emmett said begrudgingly, handing Jasper the money.

"So," Emmett began.

"So, what?"

"So, you and the lady friend made it official, huh?" Jasper asked, wiggling his eyebrows up and down.

"You really aren't going to call her 'Bella', are you?" I said, frustration clear in my voice.

"Not the first time, at least. It's too perfect to stop calling her that."

"Yeah, we did. I would have bet anything that Charlie was going to murder me."

"Yeah, so did I," Emmett said.

"What?" I asked, hoping they didn't bet on what I think they did.

"We had a bet going on whether or not Charlie was going to murder you," Jasper informed me.

"Clearly, you won."

"I think he cheated. He probably talked to Charlie this morning and convinced him to not murder you," Emmett accused.

Jasper defended himself. "I did nothing of the sort."

"You are such a poor sport, Emmett," I said.

"Am not."

"And a two year old, apparently."

Emmett showed his maturity by sticking out his tongue and crossing his arms over his massive chest.

I looked over at Bella and noticed she looked tense as Alice and Rose talked about playing "Bella Barbie" with her. I placed my hand on her knee and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She turned to me and gave me a tight smile. "I love you," I whispered.

"I love you, too," Bella whispered back. She leaned in and gave me a quick, chaste kiss.

"You are so whipped," Emmett said.

"Shut the hell up."

**BPOV**

Charlie joined us shortly after Edward and I got to the Dining Room. He gave me a genuine smile before taking his seat next to my mother. During breakfast, Alice and Rosalie were discussing my pending demise. It wasn't so bad knowing Edward would be waiting for me when we got back. I would occasionally look at my parents, as well as Edward's and couldn't help but notice the approving looks they each gave me. It felt so good not having to sneak around behind everybody's backs. Our families knew that Edward and I loved each other, and that's all that mattered.

Soon after we finished eating, Alice spoke up. "Alright, Bella, let's get started." She stood up and grabbed my hand, pulling me away from Edward. Before I got too far, I felt a hand pull me back by my wrist, causing me to land in Edward's lap.

"Be safe," he said before kissing me good-bye.

"I will," I responded breathlessly. I wrapped him up in a tight embrace before Alice pried me from his grasp.

She and Rose led me to towards the stairs. Before we descended them, she stopped at the courtesy phone to call the spa and make our appointments.

"How long do you think this is going to take?" I asked Rosalie as Alice was making our reservations at the spa.

"Don't worry, Bella. You'll be back soon enough to see Edward."

I blushed at being caught already missing Edward. We were barely outside of the dining room and I was already going through withdrawals.

"Alright, we're all set. Let's head up to the promenade to browse through the shops," Alice said as she bounced over to Rosalie and me.

"Has anyone ever told you that you have _way_ too much energy?"

"No, what would make you say that?"

"I have no idea. I must be going crazy to think that you have too much energy," I said, sarcasm dripping from my voice.

"Enough talking, we need to get going so we have enough time to shop to get to the spa on time."

With that, Alice and Rosalie took my hands in theirs and we ascended the stairs up to the Royal Promenade. When we arrived, they immediately dragged me to the Nicole Miller Boutique. They headed straight for the dress racks and started pulling dresses out for themselves, as well as me.

Five minutes later, they were finished looking through the dress racks. "Here," they said at the same time. The two of them threw the dresses they had picked for me in my arms and pushed me towards the dressing rooms.

"Pushy, pushy, you guys," I complained.

"We're on a time crunch; we need to hurry so we're not late for the spa," Rosalie answered.

I looked through the outfits they had picked and mentally eliminated the ones that I knew I would not be trying on. I was left with three choices. The first one was a sleeveless black dress with gold and blue circles on the hem and neckline. I threw it on and stepped out to show Alice and Rose.

"Next," they called out in unison.

"I barely stepped out. How can you tell so quickly?"

"Bella, just trust us. We know what we're doing," Rosalie explained.

I walked back into the dressing room and tried on the next one. This one was a v-neck empire waist dress with purple and aqua circles. I walked out, once again, and confronted the jury. "What do you guys think of this one?"

"I like it, but I have a feeling that the next one will be 'the' one." Of course Alice would know which one I would end up getting.

I stepped back into the dressing room and tried on the last option. It was a grey halter jersey dress with a rouched empire waist; much more my style. For the final time, I emerged from the cramped room and awaited their deliberation.

"Perfect," Rosalie said with a satisfied smile on her gorgeous face.

"I told you," Alice informed with her all-knowing smirk.

"Remind me to never bet against you, Alice."

"Wise decision," Rosalie advised.

After I had changed back into my regular clothes, I put the rejects back on the rack, the winner draped over my arm.

I stepped out of the dressing room area and Rosalie and Alice were looking through the rest of the racks of clothing. "Can you guys hold this; I'm going to stop by the restroom."

"Sure, no problem, Bella." Alice stuck out her arm and I draped the dress over it.

"Thanks." I walked out of the store and headed towards the restroom. They were on the complete opposite side of the deck and since it was an "at sea" day, many people were out and about. After I finished, I was walking back to the store when I felt a tap on my shoulder. "Hey."

I turned around and saw Will, the guy who served us our drinks at bingo. "Oh, hey. How are you?"

"I'm good. How are you?"

"Fine thanks. What are you up to?" I asked, trying to start a conversation.

"Oh, nothing much. I don't have to work until later, so I was just walking around. When I saw you, I thought I'd say hi."

"Oh, well, hi. Listen, I've got to get back to my friends. Maybe I'll see you later." I turned around to continue my walk back to the store, but felt a hand grab my forearm.

"Why didn't you meet me that night?" he asked, his tone losing its friendly quality.

His question caught me off guard. "Um, I, uh, I had plans that night." I don't think my lie was very convincing.

"It was that other guy, wasn't it?"

"Edward?"

"Whatever the fuck his name was."

I turned around and started walking back to the store but, once again, I felt Will pull me back. His grip was like a vice, sure to leave a mark. "Let go of me!" I screamed as he dragged me towards the elevators.

"Uh, uh, uh, I wouldn't do that if I were you. We can do this the easy way, or the hard way." His voice was so calm, it was eerie.

I shut my mouth and didn't put up a fight. I figured that if I complied with him for now, he would eventually let me go with no harm done. "Where are we going?"

"Back to my room, like we should have done that first night I met you."

Okay, this might not be as easy as I thought. As I thought about what he could do to me, I began to hyperventilate.

"Calm down, Sugar. I don't want to hurt you anymore than necessary." He ran the back of his hand across my cheek, no doubt a show for the security cameras in the elevator. I cringed away from his touch, hoping that Edward would find me in time.

**Rosalie POV **

Alice and I had finished looking through the racks of clothing at Nicole Miller. We bought a few things, including Bella's dress, and had moved onto the Kitson Boutique. We knew that Bella would know where to find us. I looked at my watch and was surprised at the time.

"Hey, Alice?"

No response from the pixie.

"Alice!" I yelled, finally capturing her attention.

"What?"

"Where's Bella? She's been gone for twenty minutes."

"She probably found Edward. She deserves a little time with Edward. I'll call him to make sure he has her at the spa by ten."

She pulled out her iPhone and dialed Edward. I listened closely to their conversation. Alice put the phone between the two of us and I heard the dial tone.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Hey, Eddie," Alice responded in her cheerful voice.

"I told you not to call me that. What do you want?" he asked, clearly frustrated.

"I just want to make sure you'll have Bella at the spa by ten."

"Alice, Bella's not with me. She's been with you this whole time, hasn't she?"

"Well, you see, she went to the bathroom and hasn't come back yet, so we assumed that she found you."

"How long has she been gone?" he asked, sounding a little panicked.

"Twenty minutes."

"Where are you? I'm coming down."

"We're on the Royal Promenade in Kitson."

"I'll be there in two minutes." He hung up, and I knew something wasn't right.

"This isn't good," Alice said, echoing my thoughts.

**EPOV**

What the hell were they thinking letting Bella go to the bathroom by herself? Haven't they heard of the buddy system? I was racing down from the basketball court where Jasper, Emmett, and I were shooting hoops. They asked where I was going in such a hurry, but I didn't have time to answer them. I was in such a hurry that I was pushing people out of my way, earning me some not so nice comments. I flew down the stairs three at a time. I had cleared eight crowded flights of stairs in one minute. Why were there so many people on the stairs anyway?

The Royal Promenade was filled with people and I quickly ran to Kitson. Rosalie and Alice were standing outside of the boutique. "Which way did she go?!"

"That way," Rose pointed to my left.

I started running again, but Alice's voice stopped me. "Edward, you have to hurry. I have a bad feeling about this."

"Well, if you hadn't let her go by herself, we wouldn't be in this mess, would we?" I snapped at her.

"I know, Edward, we're sorry but we can talk about this later, we don't have much time."

I took off, again, in the direction they pointed me towards. As I ran, I tried to think of what could have happened to her. My worst fear was that she had fallen overboard. I was praying to whatever God there was that some bastard hadn't kidnapped her. The best outlook was that she simply got lost, and was perfectly fine. Either way, I ran as fast as I could. I made it to the bathroom and almost ran in, forgetting that that wouldn't be "proper".

Fuck proper.

I threw the door open and called Bella's name over and over again.

No answer. I did, however, get a purse thrown at me that weighed a ton. I rushed back out into the hallway before I could get security called on my ass and began asking people if they had seen Bella.

"Have you seen a girl about 5' 5", mahogany waist-length hair, deep, brown eyes, very beautiful?" I asked hundreds of people. Okay, so maybe it wasn't a hundred, but I was desperate to make sure my Bella was safe, so it felt like time was against me.

Everybody had said that they hadn't seen her and I was feeling defeated.

I saw an elderly couple. The man was tall and dressed in jeans, checkered shirt, boots and a cowboy hat. The woman was dressed in a pair of jeans, a simple t-shirt, and sneakers. I ran up to them, probably looking like a mad man.

I asked them if they had seen Bella and described her to them.

"Pretty, little thing?" the man asked.

"Yes! Have you seen her?!"

"I sure have. She was with another guy and looked really scared."

Oh god. I felt like I was going to be sick. "The guy, what did he look like?"

"Well, he was tall, had dirty blonde hair, light eyes, and he looked like a model."

The woman added to his description, "He had a British accent, too."

I put their descriptions together and placed a name to it.

Will.

"Where did you see them going?"

"They got in an elevator going down. That's the last we saw of them. I hope you find her. She's definitely a keeper."

"That she is. Thank you so much."

I raced through the crowded promenade to the elevator and hit the number 2. I was praying that he took her to his room and not some unknown location. I was surprised that I remembered the bastard's room number that he wrote down on the napkin that night at Bingo.

The elevator seemed to be moving slower than usual. It was just my luck that the elevator would stop at every floor and let people in or out. I was hysterical by the time it dinged, signaling my arrival to the second floor. I almost ran into the metal doors as I bolted out of the elevator. I quickly read the sign at the junction of the hallways and ran down to the right.

I finally stopped outside of room 2340. I placed my ear against the door and heard Bella's frantic voice.

"Why me?" she asked. I could hear the tears in her voice and wanted to rush in there and envelop her in my arms.

"Because that first night I saw you, I wanted you. And I always get what I want, no matter how."

What a sick bastard.

I had no idea how I was going to gain access into the room to save Bella. There was no way in hell I was going to be able to break down the door. There wasn't enough time to try to find somebody with a master key. I decided to try knocking, hoping that Will would be foolish enough to answer it.

Three quick knocks on the door, and I waited. I heard Bella's sharp intake of breath and Will cursing under his breath. I placed my hand over the peephole, just in case he decided to be smart and check to see who was at the door. Before long, I heard the deadbolt unlatching and the lock slide open. The door opened, and I threw my fist back, snapping it forward into his face.

A satisfying crack was heard, and I knew I had broken his nose.

"What the fuck!" He yelled as he grabbed his nose. I wasn't anywhere near done with him. I punched him a few times in his stomach and as he was bent over, I slammed my fists down on the back of his neck. This knocked him to the floor and I began kicking him a few times. I was so enraged that I didn't hear my angel calling for me.

"Edward! Please, stop!" she sobbed.

I was brought back to the present and looked towards the bed. What I saw made me sick to the core. Bella was sitting up on the bed, her back against the wall. Her shirt was torn to shreds and the straps of her bra were hanging off her shoulder. Tear tracks ran down her cheeks.

Before it was humanly possible, I was in front of Bella and wrapped her in my embrace. She began sobbing uncontrollably. Tears formed in my own eyes as I apologized to her. "I'm so sorry, Bella. I should have never let you out of my sight."

Bella kept whispering that she loved me and that it wasn't my fault. I knew it was my fault, but I didn't want to argue with her in that moment. Bella's scream made me pull away quickly. I turned around and saw that Will was right behind me. I was on the ground with the force of his punch. Will had kneeled down beside me and looked hell bent on revenge. I covered my face and curled up into the fetal position to try to protect myself.

I didn't fell anything, but I heard a struggle going on behind me. I tore my arms away from my face and the sight before me made me the happiest person on the planet. Rosalie and Alice were on the bed next to Bella, trying to comfort her.

Emmett and Jasper each had Will in their grasps. Will was trying to break free from them, but I knew there was no way in hell that was going to happen. "It was you!!" he screeched. "I'm going to kill you for taking her away from me!!!"

Just then, three security officers entered the room. "What is going on here?" The one in the middle asked.

"This douche bag tried to rape our sister," Emmett informed them.

The two officers that were flanking the one that spoke stepped up to Emmett and Jasper and took Will into their grasps. One of them slapped handcuffs on his wrists while the other held him. They led Will out of the room.

"We'll need to get statements from you," the officer said to Bella. "Who else witnessed the attempted rape?" he asked.

"I interrupted him before it could get too far."

"Then we'll need to talk to you as well. Follow me, please."

I looked over at Bella. She was sitting in between Alice and Rose. It seemed like she was in shock. Who could blame her? I walked slowly over to her and crouched down so I was eye level with her. "Bella, Love, we need to give our statements."

"Here," Alice reached into one of the bags that was beside her on the bed and pulled out a jacket. "Put this on." Bella made no attempt to reach for the garment, so I took it from Alice and placed it gently over her head.

She nodded and stood up from the bed. She placed one foot in front of the other, but gravity took over and she began falling to the floor. Instinctually, my arms shot out to catch her. Bella was in so much shock that she couldn't even walk. I was going to kill Will. I picked up Bella and cradled her into my chest.

I followed the officer out the door and to the infirmary. Once we entered the office, the officer explained to the nurse what had happened. He looked at Bella cradled in my arms and shot us a sympathetic look. "You can place her on the cot," he said, pointing to where he wanted her. Gently, I lay Bella down, but she wouldn't let go of my shirt.

"Don't leave me," Bella cried, her body wracked with more sobs.

"I won't, Love, I promise. I'll be right here. I'm not going to let anything happen to you, alright?" I quickly touched my lips to her forehead.

Bella released my shirt, but had my hand in a death grip. Her sobs didn't let up.

The nurse came over and reached for Bella to begin examining her. She whimpered and cringed away from his touch and her grip grew impossibly stronger on my fingers.

"May I look at her? I'm a licensed doctor." My head whipped around at the voice. Carlisle stood in the doorway of the infirmary. I was never more grateful that my father was a doctor.

"I'm sorry, but it's not allowed." The nurse informed.

"From the look of things, you're not getting anywhere near her without her shying away from you. I'll make you a deal, if I can touch her, I get to examine her. If not, feel free to try and accomplish it yourself."

The nurse looked taken aback by my father's bargain. He seemed to be confident that Carlisle wasn't going to have any more luck than he did getting close to Bella. "Alright, give it a go." He stepped aside and let my father enter the room.

Carlisle moved slowly and talked to Bella in a reassuring voice. Bella's head was buried in my chest, but when Carlisle started speaking, she slowly looked up. "Bella, it's just me. I need to take a look at you, okay?" Bella nodded her head, but still wouldn't let go of me. Carlisle's movements toward us were slow and steady. He reached the edge of the cot and slowly placed a hand on Bella's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. Bella flinched, but Carlisle quickly reassured her that it was just him and no one else. She sighed and seemed to relax as Carlisle began his examination. "You can leave now," he said to the nurse. I looked over at him and saw the dumbstruck look on his face. "My father," I mouthed to him. He glared at the back of Carlisle's head and stormed out of the examination room. Once the nurse was gone, Bella relaxed even more and Carlisle was easily able to complete her exam.

"She's got some bruises around her wrists and forearms and a few scratches on her chest. Nothing serious. She'll be healed in a couple day's time."

"Thank you, Dad. How did you know we were here?"

"Alice called me and told me what happened. I came down as soon as I heard. Your mother was going to call Renée and let her and Charlie know what happened."

_Fuck. I'm dead._

"Where is she?! Where's my daughter?!" I heard Charlie roar from the hallway.

"Dad?" Bella called softly.

Charlie burst through the door with a murderous look on his face. "I'm going to kill you!" he yelled as he pointed his finger. "You promised me that you wouldn't let anything happen to her!"

"I know, Sir. I take full responsibility for what happened to Bella. I'm sorry, I never meant for anything to happen to her. It will never happen again."

"You're damn right it won't happen again."

"Thank you for understanding, Sir."

"Oh, you're not off the hook that easily. I forbid you from seeing my daughter ever again."

My breath left my body in a whoosh. He couldn't tell me I couldn't see Bella again. Could he?

"With all due respect, Sir, we share a room. It's impossible for us not to see each other."

"Not for long. Renée is going to be sharing a room with Bella for the remainder of the trip. You will be sleeping on the floor in my room."

"Dad, you can't do that," Bella said, silent tears running down her cheeks.

"Not now, Bella."

I decided that it would be best to go along with whatever Charlie said. Hopefully, he would see that I never meant for Bella to get hurt and would let me back into our room.

"Yes, Sir."

"Good, now let go of my daughter and move your shit into my room."

I turned to Bella and took her face delicately into my hands. "I love you, never forget that." I lowered my head to touch my lips to hers. It was a quick kiss and when it was over, Bella threw her arms around my neck.

"I love you, too."

**A/N: OH SHIT!!!!! Bet ya didn't see that coming, because we sure didn't. This is our favorite chapter to date. The elderly couple in this chapter is based off of JillMH's riding instructor's parents. They are seriously the nicest people on the planet. The song for this chapter is "Time Is Running Out" by Muse. It's cliché but it works. There is no quote in this chapter because nothing fit. Ok, so we really enjoy getting reviews and it's kind of irritating when you guys read and don't review. We're down on our knees groveling for your reviews. Please review. We take comments, critiques, criticism, anything. It makes us better writers. We really don't want to, but we will delay our updates if we don't get more reviews. The links for Bella's dresses will be up on our profiles. Till next time.**


	20. Need

Ch. 19: Need

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean or Johnny Rockets. **

**A/N: Hello spoiled brats!! We must love you guys if we have two updates in one week. Ok, you guys need to leave Charlie alone. The response to Charlie was comical. Thanks for the story/author alerts, favorite stories/authors, as well as reviews. You guys are much better with your reviews but that doesn't mean they can stop. We still want them and will delay updates. **

**BPOV**

After Edward was kicked out by Charlie, I was a nervous wreck. When Will had taken me into his room, I could only hope that Edward remembered the room number from the napkin. I thanked God when Edward saved me before Will could do anything too drastic. Regardless, the whole situation left me shaky and in shock.

"Miss, we're going to need your statement now," one of the officers said to me as I sat on the examination table. I nodded and he began, "Can you tell me what happened before that guy-"

"Edward," I corrected. My palms started to sweat and I kept fidgeting with the sleeves of the jacket I was wearing.

"Right. What happened before Edward showed up?"

"I was on the Royal Promenade with two of my friends. I had to go to the bathroom and when I was on my way back to the store, Will," I shuddered at his name rolling off my tongue, "came up to meand started talking to me."

"And how do you know Will?" he asked.

"He brought us our drinks one night at the beginning of the cruise. He left me his number and told me to meet him in his room. I threw the paper out as soon as I could."

"Have you talked to him between now and then?" he asked as he wrote in his notepad.

"No."

"Okay, so what happened after he talked to you?"

"I started walking away, but he pulled me back and asked me why I didn't meet him that night. I told him I had plans. I tried walking away again, but he grabbed my arm and pulled me to the elevators. I screamed for him to let me go, but he said I should stop or he was going to do something worse to me." Talking about what had happened was making me feel like I was back in his control. I felt the tears begin running down my cheeks again.

I forgot Charlie was there until he spoke up. "He's not coming back, Bells. He's never going to hurt you again. You're almost done, Bells." I heard Charlie's words, but they brought me little comfort.

I drew in a shaky breath and continued telling the officer about my ordeal. "He took me to his room and said he was going to rape me and if I told anyone what happened, he was going to kill me. He began ripping my clothes off me." The tears were now flowing freely and all I wanted was to be in Edward's arms.

"Is that when Edward came in?" I nodded, not trusting my voice to speak. "How did he get in?"

"There was a knock on the door. Will thought it best to see what the person at the door wanted and get rid of them as soon as possible." Charlie was rubbing my back, trying to calm me down. It wasn't really helping. "As soon as the door was open, Edward punched Will in the face. He kept beating him up until I screamed at him to stop. I was afraid he was going to kill him, but I didn't want that to happen. Edward stopped and came over to me. Will got up and was able to get a punch in to Edward. He was going to beat him up, but Emmett and Jasper-"

"Who are Emmett and Jasper?"

"Edward's brothers." Even though Edward and Jasper weren't related, they looked out for each other like brothers would. "They came in and restrained Will. That's when you guys showed up."

"Thank you, Miss Swan. You're free to go."

I hopped off the cot. Charlie had to help steady me. "You're mother is waiting for you in your room."

"Okay." Charlie ushered me to the elevator and to my room.

I opened the door and my mother came rushing up to me, engulfing me in a bone-crushing hug. "Oh, Baby! I'm so sorry for not being there with you. Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

I looked around and my heart sunk. All of Edward's stuff was gone and, in their place, my mom's belongings. "Just some bruises and scratches. I'm really tired, Mom. I'm going to lay down."

"No problem, Baby. I'll be here if you need anything."

I didn't say anything, just crawled under the covers. It was unbelievable how mentally exhausted I was. In a matter of minutes, I was unconscious.

_Will was coming towards me. Stalking towards me would be a better way to describe it, like a predator to its prey. "Don't cry, Sugar," he said as he stroked my cheek with his rough hands. "This will only hurt a little bit." With that, he grabbed my hips and thrust into me._

I shot out of bed, panting and crying, sweat coating every inch of my body.

"Bella, Sweetie, I'm right here," my mom said, coming towards me.

I cringed away from her, "Don't touch me!" I heard this terrible screeching noise and it took me a few minutes before I realized it was me.

**Charlie POV**

I was sitting at the bar, nursing my glass of scotch when my phone rang. "Hello?" I answered.

"Charlie! Bella's freaking out and she won't let me near her! She keeps screaming for Edward," Renée cried into the phone.

"No! Absolutely not. That boy is not allowed anywhere near her, I made that clear earlier. I'm coming right up." I hung up, left a ten dollar bill on the bar top, and raced up to the tenth floor.

I was a few doors away from Bella's when I heard her strangled cries. I ran faster than I ever had before. I knocked rapidly and Renée had the door open quickly. As I looked past her to the bed, I saw Bella curled up into the fetal position, crying out for Edward. Her hair was matted with sweat against her forehead. It was the most heart wrenching sight I have ever seen in my life. There was no way in hell I was about to let him in here, so I went up to Bella and touched her shoulder. That probably wasn't the best decision because she screamed louder than I have ever heard her scream in her life. I jumped back in surprise. "Bells, please, calm down. It's just me." She curled tighter around herself and kept calling for _him_.

"Is it really so bad to let him in here?" Renée said. "You saw how calm she was with him earlier."

"NO! He let her get hurt and now he's going to suffer the consequences." I was at a loss at what to do, so I called the one person I thought could help.

The phone rang once before he picked up, "Charlie?"

"Carlisle, I need your help. Bella's having a panic attack. She won't let me or Renée anywhere near her." I left out the part about her calling for Edward.

"I'm on my way up. What else, Charlie? I know you're leaving something out."

I sighed and gave in, wanting to help Bella calm down as soon as possible. "She keeps calling for Edward."

"Do you want him to come up with me?"

"No. He has no right to be near her after what he did."

"He probably could help, Charlie."

"I don't want to hear it!" I hung up the phone and started pacing around the room, at a loss at what to do. I have never felt so helpless before.

A knock at the door brought me back to reality. Renée opened the door and Carlisle stepped in. He took one look at Bella and knew that it was worse than he thought. I had hope, though, because he was able to examine her at the infirmary. "Bella," he called. I saw her cringe away from his voice.

"Baby, Carlisle's just trying to help," Renée said through her silent tears.

"Bella, we need you to calm down." Carlisle stepped up to the side of the bed. Bella had her head buried under her arm, but when she peeked out, she freaked out even more.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" she wailed.

Carlisle walked over to us. "Charlie, I understand that you don't want Edward near her, but if you don't let him, her situation's only going to get worse. Her heart rate is probably through the roof and we need to get it down before she goes into cardiac arrest."

Hearing the severity of Bella's condition brought me crashing down to reality. I still felt that Edward wasn't good for my baby girl, but if he was the only one who could help her, I was willing to give it a try. "Where is he?" I asked, my voice void of emotion. "Do you need to call him and let him know what's going on?"

"Actually, he was there when you called me, so he knows. I told him that you weren't going to let him near Bella and to stay with the rest of my family, but he insisted on following me up here. He's waiting outside," Carlisle informed.

"Edward, get your ass in here," I called, loud enough to be heard over Bella's screaming.

**EPOV**

I was standing outside Bella's room and my heart tore at the sound of her strangled cries. I didn't know the full story, but I knew that she wasn't calming down, no matter who came near her and that she kept calling for me. When Charlie had called, I followed my father up to the room, despite Charlie's disapproval. I wanted, so bad, to go in, and cradle Bella in my arms.

"Edward, get your ass in here," I heard Charlie call over Bella. I didn't hesitate to open the door and go to my angel's side. As soon as I stepped foot in the door, my gaze zeroed in on Bella's fragile form curled up in the corner of the bed.

"Bella, Love, it's me." Her screams stopped, but her sobbing continued. I felt tears in my own eyes, knowing that I could have prevented this shitty situation if I had never let Bella out of my sight. Slowly, I crawled onto the bed next to Bella. I touched her shoulder and when she flinched away from my touch, another piece of my heart broke. "It's just me, Love. Please, calm down."

"Edward?" she asked in the smallest voice imaginable.

"Yes, Love." She uncurled herself from the position she was in and turned towards me. I lay down next to her and she threw her arms around my neck, squeezing with whatever strength she had left. My shirt was getting soaked from her tears, but I didn't care. All that mattered to me was getting Bella to calm down. I started stroking her back and humming her lullaby to her. "I love you," I told her. She nodded against my chest, but didn't say anything. I was confident that she returned the feeling, so I wasn't worried that she didn't say it back. I continued humming her lullaby and rubbing circles on her back.

Eventually, Bella's sobs quieted to just tears running down her face. I looked down and wiped away the tear tracks staining her face. "I love you," she whispered. Shortly after, her breathing evened out, and I knew she was asleep.

"Now that she's calmed down, you can leave," Charlie said.

"Yes, Sir." I tried to get up out of the bed, but Bella had a death grip on my shirt. I tried prying her fingers loose, but she started stirring and whimpering in her sleep.

"Just leave them be, Charlie," Renée said.

Charlie huffed, but conceded.

"Charlie?" I heard Alice call from the doorway. She, along with the rest of my family, had been poolside when the call about Bella from Charlie came. Carlisle and I insisted that everyone else stay and enjoy their time.

"Yeah?" he said.

"Can Rosalie and I talk to you for a minute about Bella?"

"Sure, come on in." Alice and Rosalie walked into the room and took a seat on the couch, Charlie in the seat across from them. Renée and Carlisle left the room to give them a little privacy. Charlie was much more civil towards them than he was to me. Come to think of it, it seemed as though I was the only one in my family that Charlie had a problem with. I didn't care as long as I had Bella in my arms. I leaned down and kissed Bella's forehead.

"What did you ladies want to talk about?"

"We just wanted to let you know that if Edward hadn't shown up at Will's room, Bella could have been hurt much worse. It wasn't his fault that Bella was alone. Rosalie and I should have been more responsible and gone to the restroom with her. We feel horrible that this happened, but we don't want our brother to shoulder the blame," Alice explained.

"I know, I was there when Bella gave her statement to the officer. What irked me was the fact that he broke his promise about keeping her safe."

"That's our fault as well. We told him that he wasn't allowed to come with us because we wanted Bella to surprise him tonight at dinner. We can assure you that he tried his damnedest to come with us, but we wouldn't budge," Rosalie said, regret laced her tone.

"Is this true?" Charlie asked, addressing me.

"Yes, I was going to accompany the girls to the promenade, but they insisted on me staying behind. If you know Alice, you know that there is no way she would waver from her decisions," I informed him.

"Ain't that the truth," Charlie said, with a chuckle. I was actually surprised to hear him laugh. Charlie was silent after that, thinking over the information he was just provided with.

"You should have seen him after you told him he couldn't see Bella anymore. He was moping all over the place and wouldn't do anything fun with us," Alice told Charlie.

Bella started mumbling in her sleep, so I started humming to her again. "Edward, I am a generous man," I almost scoffed at this, but kept it to myself, "and I can see that my daughter really cares about you, as you do her. I am prepared to let you see my daughter again."

"I really do love her like you wouldn't believe. Thank you, Sir. Does that mean I get to move back into our room?" I asked.

"Fuck no! Be glad that I'm letting you see her again. Just keep in mind that this is strike one. If you hit three strikes, I will kick your ass and refuse to let you go out with her. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Sir." I wasn't happy about not being able to have Bella's warm body snuggled up against mine as I slept, but, at this point, I was willing to take whatever I could get.

"Thank you, Charlie," Alice and Rosalie said at the same time. They both stood up and gave Charlie a hug. They came over to Bella and I and gave her a gentle squeeze. "You owe us," they whispered, low enough so Charlie couldn't hear.

"I know, I'll see you guys later. Thank you," I told them. The two of them left the room without another word.

"Can I trust you enough to not try any funny business while I go find Renée?" Charlie asked after Alice and Rose had left.

"I swear on my life that I won't try anything." As I said this, I didn't take my eyes off Bella's sleeping form.

"If I find out you try anything indecent, that's going to be strike two. Understand?"

"I understand."

"If she wakes up before I get back, take care of her," he said as he walked out the door.

Once I didn't have Charlie hovering over me like a vulture, I was able to relax and enjoy actually being with Bella, no matter how messed up the situation may be. Before I knew it, I was asleep.

**BPOV**

Slowly, I opened my eyes. The room was dark, but the curtains were open. How long had I been out? I felt two warm arms encircling me and automatically knew who it was. Edward. I recalled the horrific dream I had, but after that, everything else was a blur. "Edward?" I called quietly. My voice was thick and raspy. I hated to wake him up, but I needed to know what happened after I woke up.

He stirred and groggily opened his eyes. "Hey. How are you feeling?" he asked as he brushed a strand of hair out of my face.

"A little weak and sore, but, otherwise, okay. Not that I object, but why are you here? I thought Charlie told you I couldn't see you anymore."

"He did, but after you wouldn't let anybody else touch you, he asked me to try to calm you down. What happened, anyway? All I know is that you woke up screaming." I wasn't sure, but I thought I saw him shudder at recalling the memory.

"I had a bad dream," I said softly. I felt the tears begin to prickle in my eyes.

"What was it about?" I stayed silent. "If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. Just know that I'll always be here to listen." He gently kissed my forehead, my eyes sliding closed in response.

"He was back," Edward must've known who I was talking about because I saw a flash of anger shoot across his eyes. "He came back for me, but this time, you didn't come in time to save me," I whimpered.

"Shh, Bella. He's not coming back. I won't let him touch you ever again, alright?"

"I know, but it was so real. When I saw Carlisle, all I could think about was him. He doesn't hate me, does he?" I asked, worried I had offended Carlisle.

"Carlisle could never hate you, no one could," Edward reassured me.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled into his chest.

"For what?" He asked, pushing me away so he could see my face.

"For freaking out. I don't know what came over me."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Love. You went through a traumatic experience and being afraid is natural. Just know that I'll be there to protect you, from now on. Let's just try to get past this and think about the here and now."

"How is it that you always know just what to say?"

"I don't know, I guess it's one of my many talents."

"Don't flatter yourself too much, Romeo," I said, kissing his chest through his shirt.

He chuckled, "I'm glad to see you still have your sense of humor."

"I'm trying."

"Good, I'm glad. Are you hungry?"

"No," I said snuggling closer into his rock hard body.

"Regardless, I'm going to order you food." Edward got out of bed and grabbed the Room Service menu. "What do you feel like eating?"

I thought about it and decided. Smiling, I said, "Johnny Rockets. They deliver to the rooms."

"Okay, what do you want?"

"Just a burger and a chocolate shake."

Edward picked up the phone and placed our order. "It'll be here in half an hour," he said as he crawled back into bed with me. "Any ideas on what we can do in the meantime?"

"Just lay with me," I said as I wrapped my arms around him, once again.

"I'd be happy to. I love you."

"I love you, too." I kissed the hollow beneath his ear, causing him to shiver. Edward and I talked about insignificant things while we waited for the food. We never talked about him, though.

A knock at the door signaled the arrival of our food. I reluctantly let go of Edward so he could open the door. I stayed quiet and when I saw the guy walk in pushing the cart, I almost had another panic attack. He was blonde and almost looked like _his_ twin. Edward noticed my discomfort and took over. "I've got it from here, thanks." The guy walked out the door as Edward sat next to me on the bed. "Are you alright? I'm sorry, I didn't even think about the similarities."

My breathing was slowing back down, but I still couldn't find my voice. Edward pulled me into his embrace and hummed my lullaby to me. "Thank you," I said, once I trusted my voice.

"That's what I'm here for." He stood up and grabbed our plates off the cart, handing one to me. We ate in a comfortable silence. When we were done, Edward just held me as we watched TV.

I heard a key being slipped into the slot and Renée and Charlie walked in. "How are you feeling, Baby?" Renée asked.

"I'm doing better. I'm sorry about earlier."

"No need to apologize, Sweetie," she said.

"Alright Edward, it's time for you to leave," Charlie said.

"What?! He can't leave, Dad. I need him. What if I have another nightmare? He has to stay!" I was becoming hysterical, once again. I had grabbed Edward's hand and was squeezing the life out of it.

"Bella, calm down, please," my dad said. He seemed to be having an internal debate before he spoke. "I know he helped you earlier today, but I still don't feel comfortable with him sleeping in the same bed as you after what happened. He has to earn that privilege back."

"But Dad-"

"No 'but's, Bella. This is final."

"I'll be right down the hall if you need me, Love. I'll be here in a second. I love you," Edward said. He gave me a quick kiss on the lips before he got off the bed and left with Charlie.

I hadn't realized I was crying until Renée engulfed me in her embrace. "Oh, Sweetie, don't cry. I know your dad's being tough, but he still hasn't fully forgiven Edward yet."

"But he didn't do anything!"

"I know, I know." Renée let me cry while she held me until I fell asleep.

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"NO!" I screamed as I, once again, shot out of bed, crying and panting. It was the same nightmare as before, but things escalated.

"Baby, it's not real. He's not here," I heard my mom say through my screaming.

"Edward! I need Edward!"

My mother stumbled out of the bed and through the door so fast, I almost missed it. I curled up in a ball and cried. Not a minute later, I felt Edward's strong arms wrap around me from behind. I quickly flipped around so fast and hugged myself tighter to him "I'm here, Love, I'm here."

"Don't leave," I cried into his chest.

"I won't. Forget what Charlie said, I'm staying right here with you, I promise."

My sobs quieted in his calming presence, but I was too afraid to close my eyes again.

"Charlie, don't you see? She needs him. Quit being so stubborn and just let him stay. They've been in the same room for almost a week and nothing has happened yet. Give them some credit and let them be," I heard my mom say.

My dad sighed and I could imagine him rubbing the palms of his hands over his eyes. "Fine, but one wrong move and he's out."

"Sleep, Love. I'm not leaving. I love you," Edward said.

I trusted Edward with my life and when he said that he wouldn't leave, I knew he wouldn't. I breathed in Edward's signature scent, which soothed me even more. I heard the click of the door and knew my parents had left Edward and I alone. "I love you," I said before I was consumed by the darkness, once again.

**A/N: So…what'd ya think? Hopefully you guys will like Charlie a little bit more now. We were really excited to write this, that's why it's out so fast. The song for this chapter is "Need" by Hana Pestle. If you have not heard this song, you must do it now. Please review!! **


	21. Love Remains the Same

Ch. 20: Love Remains the Same

**A/N: Hello loves!! We apologize for the delay in this chapter but we have been crazy busy. Does anybody else feel like the last month of school is when the teachers decide to throw all this work at you? Anywho, thanks so much for the story/author alerts, favorite stories/authors, and reviews. It's so nice waking up to an inbox full of emails from FF This chapter is dedicated to Stephanie aka Daddy's Little Cannibal.**

**EPOV**

Once Charlie had kicked me out of Bella's and my room, I sulked back down the hall to Charlie and Renée's room. I refused to see their room as mine, even though I could almost guarantee I wouldn't be back in my room for the duration of the cruise. I opened the door and saw that Charlie so graciously laid out a blanket and a few pillows on the floor. I mentally calculated my chances of getting away with sleeping on the bed. An image of Charlie spooning me from behind flashed in my mind and I shuddered as I gladly accepted the makeshift bed on the floor. It definitely wasn't going to be the most comfortable "bed" I had slept in, but it would have to do.

After standing in the middle of the room looking at my bed, I came back to reality and quickly found my pajamas and my toiletries and went into the bathroom to change and brush my teeth. It was a miracle I didn't pass out from exhaustion while I was brushing my teeth. If I was this tired and I hadn't really done anything, I could only imagine what Bella was going through. It pained me to leave her when Charlie kicked me out but I wasn't about to defy his wishes, so I left without a fuss. I was still trying to find a comfortable position when I heard the door softly open and closed. I stopped moving around, hoping Charlie would think I was asleep already. I guess it must have worked because he stepped around me and stopped by the bed. "Thanks, Kid," I heard him whisper before he climbed onto the bed. I smiled to myself, knowing that, despite what Charlie said earlier or what he will say in the future, he knew what Bella and I meant to each other. After that, I fell into a restless sleep without my angel in my arms.

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_Knock, Knock, Knock._

My eyes shot open as a quick, rapid knocking sounded at the door. At first, I was confused as to who it could be. Then I heard Renée. "Edward! Edward!" she screamed. My heart sunk as I realized there would only be one reason why Renée would be at the door so early in the morning. I hastily threw the covers off of me as I stood to my feet. Apparently, my ankles were still tangled up in the blankets because as I tried to take a step, my foot caught, sending me flying forward.

"Come on, Kid! Get your ass up!" Charlie screamed as he stuck out his hand to help me back up. Kicking the blankets off of my ankles, I took his hand and pulled myself up, ignoring the rug burn on the palms of my hands. We raced to the door and wrenched it open.

Renée stood at the door in her pajamas. "Bella," was all she said. My heart stopped before it began again, going twice as fast as it previously was. I wasted no time in tearing down the hall back towards our room.

As I raced down the hall, a couple, who were obviously drunk, was blocking my path_. Could my life get any worse?_ They seemed amused by something. I didn't care until I heard them say something about a "screaming freak" down the hall. "Hey, man," they guy began, "you don't want to go down there. There's some freak screaming her head off. She probably needs to be admitted, if you know what I mean." He and the woman began laughing hysterically at his "funny" comment.

My blood boiled as red clouded my vision. "That 'freak' you speak of is my girlfriend and, if you don't mind, she needs me," I said, so calmly, it was eerie.

"What happened to her? Did she fall off the bed drunk?" he mocked, sending the annoying couple into convulsions of laughter_. __No, she didn't fall of the bed, but please let me show you this neat wave, over the side of the ship!_

"That is none of your god damned business but, if you must know, she was nearly raped earlier today," I spat. That seemed to sober them up. "Move," I said. Thankfully, they moved aside and let me through. I continued down the hall. As I got closer to our room, I could hear Bella's frantic cries. Once again, my heart shattered into a million pieces. I pushed myself harder than I ever have before. There was only one thought on my mind as I burst through the open door.

Bella.

She was curled up into herself, as she had done earlier that day. I cautiously moved closer to the bed, not wanting to startle her like I had done earlier. I crawled up onto the bed beside Bella and wrapped my arms securely around her from behind. She turned over and threw her arms around me. Seeing Bella so frightened was the absolute worst thing I ever had to endure. "I'm here, Love, I'm here," I soothed as I gently rubbed her back.

"Don't leave," she cried into my chest, clinging to my shirt.

"I won't. Forget what Charlie said, I'm staying right here with you, I promise." I kissed her forehead as I felt wetness run down my cheeks. I quickly wiped the tears that were streaming down my face, knowing I had to be strong for Bella. I started running my fingers through her hair, remembering that it always seemed to calm her down. Bella's cries quieted and her breathing wasn't as frantic but I could tell that she was still apprehensive about falling back asleep. I couldn't blame her.

"Charlie, don't you see? She needs him. Quit being so stubborn and just let him stay. They've been in the same room for almost a week and nothing has happened yet. Give them some credit and let them be," I heard Renée whisper.

I looked to Charlie and gave him a look that said there was no way in hell I was going to leave Bella's side again. Any punishment I would receive from Charlie was worth it if Bella was calm. He sighed and ran the palms of his hands over his eyes. "Fine, but one wrong move and he's out." He shot me a look and I knew he was dead serious. I nodded my head and mouthed, "Thank you."

"Sleep, Love. I'm not leaving. I love you," I said. Charlie and Renée quietly slipped out the door, leaving Bella and I alone, as we had been during the entire cruise.

"I love you," she whispered so quietly that, if I hadn't had my full attention on her, I could have missed it. Soon after, she fell asleep.

There was no way that I could fall back asleep. I was so awake from the adrenaline rush I experienced as I raced to Bella. As I lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling with Bella in my arms, I thought about how far Bella and I had come since we first ran into each other, literally, at the airport in Seattle. We had gone from her hating me, to loving each other, to needing each other. After the cruise was over, I was confident that Bella and I would remain together. Our circumstances were, more than likely, going to change, but our love would remain the same.

Bella stirred in her sleep and started mumbling, her breathing quickening. "Sh, Bella. I'm here, Love," I whispered to her as I kissed her forehead. She calmed down and snuggled closer into me.

Once I was satisfied that she was fine, I went back to my thoughts. Unfortunately, they drifted to Will. I clenched my jaw and clutched my fingers into fists. If I ever so much as crossed paths with him again, I was going to kill him. I'm sure Emmett and Jasper would back me up on that, not to mention Charlie. What he did to Bella was the lowest thing anybody could do to another person. Because of him, Bella was traumatized and didn't have that same spark in her eyes as she usually did. I was determined to bring that light back to her.

Dawn broke across the ocean. Sunrays from the sun peeked through the opening in the curtains. I looked at the clock and it said it was almost seven. I felt Bella's lips against my neck. "Hey," she greeted groggily.

"Hey, yourself," I said as I smiled down at her. "How are you feeling, Love?" I asked as I brushed my fingers through her hair, untangling the knots that had formed during the night.

"No worse than yesterday," she said, shrugging. "How about you?"

"I'm fine," I lied.

"If you're so fine, then why do you have dark circles under your eyes?" she asked as she traced under my eyes. "Did you sleep last night?"

_Honesty, Edward_, I said to myself. "No," I said truthfully. "I couldn't."

"Why not?" she asked, clearly not happy about it at that moment.

"I was worried about you, last night." I ran the back of my hand down her cheek. "You were restless and I just wanted to make sure you were alright." I kissed the tip of her nose.

"You're too good to be true. How bad was it?" she asked as she buried her head back into my chest.

"You kept saying 'No,' and his name. It hurts to see you so afraid, so I calmed you down before it escalated." I pulled her chin up so I could look into her eyes. "You, Bella, are too good to be true. You are and amazing person with the kindest heart. I would do anything to take the pain away," I whispered.

"Don't cry," she choked out as she brought her hand up to wipe the silent tears from my eyes. I brought my own hand around to wipe the tears from her eyes.

"Beautiful," I said quietly. I cupped her cheek in my hand and she leaned into it as she choked out a laugh.

"I think you need your eyes checked, Romeo," she said, lightening the mood considerably. I sat up, pulling her with me.

"You can't deny the truth, Love." I was rewarded with her blush. "And that," I ghosted my hand over her flushed cheeks, "makes you even more beautiful." Bella placed a chaste kiss against my lips.

"Thank you." Bella's stomach chose that moment to make itself known by growling.

"Hungry?" I asked with a cocky smirk.

Bella pushed me back down onto my back and climbed out of bed, going into the closet to retrieve her clothes for the day.

**BPOV**

I badly needed a shower after yesterday's events. Yesterday, I was completely drained and I knew I didn't have the necessary energy to bathe myself. The hot water felt good as it cascaded down my back. I let the water wash away the last of Will and felt lighter as I stepped out of the shower. I had pulled out my pair of patchwork shorts from American Eagle and two tank tops, one red, one black, to layer. After blow drying my hair, I pulled it up into a messy ponytail.

"Edward," I called. No answer. Thinking he had gone to talk to Carlisle or Charlie, I brushed it off and went back into the closet to put my dirty clothes away. I grabbed my pair of Coach tennis shoes and a pair of socks and walked back out to the bedroom. I gasped at the sight before me.

Edward was sprawled out on the bed with his head on my pillow. I smiled. After putting my shoes on, I didn't know what to do, but I didn't want to wake Edward up after he stayed up all night to look after me. Inspiration hit as I tried to find something to do. I found my phone and hit the correct speed dial.

"Bella! To what do I owe the pleasure of your call at," she paused, I'm assuming to read a clock, "seven thirty this lovely morning?"

"Hello to you, too, Ali. I was wondering if you could come get me. Edward didn't sleep at all last night and he is currently passed out on the bed. I don't have the heart to wake him up and I'm sure he'd have a heart attack if I went out by myself."

"No problemo. I'll be there in two seconds." With that, she hung up the phone.

Sure enough, two seconds later, there was a knock on the door. I raced over to it, not wanting Alice to wake Edward up. "What? Were you standing outside my door or something? It didn't take you very long to get over here."

"Something like that," Alice said as she jumped from foot to foot. "Come on, I'm hungry and Jasper and I were just on our way to the dining room." Alice grabbed my hand and pulled me out the door. I barely had time to grab my purse and slip the "Do not disturb" sign on the outside of the door.

Jasper was standing across the hall with one of his feet propped up against the wall and his hands crossed in front of his chest: the picture of ease. "Hey, Bella," Jasper greeted.

I walked up to him and engulfed him, as much as I could, in a hug. "Thank you for yesterday, Jasper." Even though he slightly resembled Will, I didn't shy away from Jasper. I knew that he was not going to hurt me, and I wasn't having a panic attack where Edward was the only one who could touch me.

He chuckled, "Anytime, Bella. You're like a member of the family now, and we look out for each other." His words struck a cord with me and I started to cry, again.

"No crying, Bella. We're supposed to be having fun and fun doesn't involve tears unless they're from laughing," Alice chastised.

"Sorry," I said as I wiped the last of my tears from my eyes. "Alright, I'm good."

The three of us went to the dining room and talked about what our plans were once we arrived in Nassau at one thirty.

"The Pirates and Dungeons Tour starts at three, so once we dock, we're going to get off," Alice informed. Just then, I caught sight of a tall, blonde, figure out or the corner of my eye and instantly cringed away from it. "Are you alright, Bella?" she asked.

I composed my expression before I answered, "Yeah, I'm fine."

Alice looked up and saw why I had flinched. She sighed, "Bella, you're safe. We won't let anything happen to you."

"I know. It's just still really fresh in my memory." She smiled and we continued on with our breakfast.

I wanted to go back to the room to kill a little bit of time before we docked in Nassau, so Alice and Jasper escorted me back. After Alice's warning to not be late for the tour, I quietly crept back into the room, so as not to wake Edward. He was still sound asleep but now he was clutching my pillow to his chest as he lay on his. I smiled and walked over to him. I gently placed a kiss to his forehead, flopped down onto the couch, and turned on the TV with the volume low.

"Bella?" I heard Edward call, his voice thick with sleep, after I had been sitting for about an hour.

"I'm sorry. Did I wake you?"

"No, my internal clock decided I shouldn't sleep anymore."

"Do you feel better?"

Edward sat up and threw his legs over the side of the bed. He put his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Yeah. How long was I out?"

"About two hours. You still have a little bit of time before we dock if you want to go back to sleep."

"I can't. The bed feels so empty without you in it with me."

"I'll lay with you if you want."

"Do you mind?"

I walked over to the bed and lay down. "Of course not. You stayed up all night for me, the least I can do is return the favor for a few hours."

"I knew I loved you for some reason," he joked.

"Ha ha ha, just get back in the bed, Romeo."

We crawled under the covers and faced each other. I brought my hand around to the back of his head and braided my fingers in his hair, rubbing his scalp. His eyes slid closed as he moaned, "That feels so good."

I chuckled, "Believe me, I know." Within minutes, Edward was softly snoring. "I love you," I whispered as I kissed his forehead again.

**A/N: Well we hope you enjoyed this chapter!! We realize it's short but if we didn't stop here, it'd be a really long chapter. Just bear with us, there is a method to our madness. We would like to thank hgbkwrm for the line about the wave over the side of the ship, an awesome line created by an awesome person!! Ok, this is totally random, but we get a lot of reviews complimenting on the relationship between Edward and Bella so we were wondering how much relationship experience you guys think we have.**


	22. Funky Nassau

Ch 21: Funky Nassau

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight, Royal Caribbean, or Tiffany's. **

**A/N: Top o' tha mornin ta ya!! So you guys should be proud of us, we're updating pretty early. A gigantor size thank you to everybody who put us on favorite stories/authors, story/author alerts, and reviews! We have no quote for this chapter, sadly. Sorry hgbkwrm. **

**BPOV**

"Bella! Edward!"

I opened my eyes when I heard my name being called. I thought it was a dream I was so deep in my sleep.

"Bella! Edward!" Then I heard the distinct beat of "Y.M.C.A." being pounded on the door. _So not a dream. _That could only be one person.

I got up because Edward was still sleeping and I didn't have the heart to wake him yet, he seemed so peaceful when he was sleeping. I opened the door and Emmett was there doing the "Y.M.C.A." and singing the chorus.

"Emmett can you please be quiet? Edward is still sleeping." He stopped then.

"Fine. Alice sent me over here to come get you guys. Everybody else is waiting on the dock and she does not want to be late for her pirate tour. And neither do I for that matter, so lets go kids."

"Oh, okay. We'll be there in ten minutes. I promise." I added the last part when he gave me a look questioning as to whether or not I was telling the truth. _Heaven forbid the guy miss out on the pirate tour._

He left and as he walked down the hall he turned around and with a smirk on his face he yelled back "And no hanky panky!"

I rolled my eyes and went back in the room. I got on the bed, bent down and began kissing Edward's face. I kissed both of his eyelids and his nose, he began to stir. "Edward, it's time to get up." I whispered. I moved to both of his cheeks, his forehead, and lastly his lips. He began to wake up more and more with each kiss. "You need to get up now. We have to get going." I whispered again. He still didn't wake up completely so I moved my lips to his neck. I placed soft kisses all on his neck and then kissed the hollow behind his ear. I was rewarded with a shiver of his entire body. "We have to get going otherwise we're going to miss the tour."

He woke up and wrapped his arms around my waist, securing me to his body, and sighed. "Mmmm, five more minutes." As he said this he pulled me back down and buried his face in the crook of my neck.

"As much as I'd love to stay in bed with you, we need to get going. Emmett was just here and I told him we'd be on the dock in ten minutes. Everybody else is already down there and they're waiting on us."

He sighed and his grip on my waist tightened, "Lets just stay here and they can go without us."

I chuckled at how willing he was to go up against Alice for me, "I'd love that but if we don't go, then we're going to have to face Alice when they get back. Now, I don't know about you, but I'd like to live to see my nineteenth birthday."

"Hmm, you make a good point. Fine, we'll go."

"Good. Now get dressed, quickly."

He did get dressed quickly. I had just enough time to get my purse ready before he came out. As soon as he came out we left, not wanting to be later than we already were.

As we walked down the hallway, Edward grabbed my hand and I relished in the fact that this amazing guy was all mine.

When we got down on the dock, we looked for our tour group and were able to spot them with ease. The tour guide was decked out in a full on pirate outfit. He had a long jacket with brass buttons and a black hat with a feather sticking out the back. Emmett and Alice were both wearing the same hats as the tour guide and they went one step further and wore eye patches. I couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous they looked but at least they were having fun.

I looked to Edward who was looking at me with a smile on his face. "What?" I asked.

"Nothing. I just haven't seen that amazing smile in over twenty four hours. It's nice to see it again." Naturally, I blushed at his compliment.

"Thanks. It's nice to see you looking rested, again. You have this spark about you when you're rested." He pulled me into his arms and kissed me on the lips. I welcomed this kiss. Unfortunately, it didn't last long because we were interrupted by a flash of a camera. We looked over and our families were looking at us, Alice had a smile on her face and was holding her camera. The stares were making my cheeks flush so I ducked my head into Edward's chest and he wrapped his arms protectively around me and kissed my temple.

Emmett chose this moment to speak up, "Hey! I said no hanky panky you two!"

Edward spoke up to this comment, "We weren't doing any 'hanky panky,' as you so intelligently put it. We're not you and Rose."

"Hey! Rosie loves it when we do the hanky panky! Don't you, Baby?" He turned to look at Rose and her response was to slap him upside his head.

"Ow! Why would you do that?"

"Because, not everyone in the city needs to know about our sex life!"

"No, but I'm sure ours is way more exciting than theirs. Remember that time wh-" He was cut off by Rose, who kissed him passionately on the lips.

"Wow! Thanks, Babe!"

"Oh, you're welcome." She turned to us and said, "It's the only way to get him to shut up." We laughed in response.

I looked around the group, checking to see who was going on the tour with our large group. I was still a little freaked out by what had happened, so I was practically glued to Edward's side. I wrapped my arms around his waist and he put his arm around my shoulders and gave them a reassuring squeeze while the guide was explaining what was going to happen throughout the day.

Edward whispered in my ear, "Bella we don't have to do this. If you want to stay here, we can. We'll just tell them you're not feeling well."

I thought seriously about taking him up on the offer but I didn't want the Will situation to affect my life. Especially, while I was on a cruise with people that I loved. "No, I'll be fine. Just stay by me, please."

"Of course. I wouldn't be anywhere else."

We began the tour after that, walking to one of the many pirate museums. The inside of the museum was set up to show the different "pirate eras". It was as if the entire area was a pirate ship. It had rickety floorboards and the air was dank. It was amazing inside. There were areas that were like the inside of the ship and areas to show the dungeons. Emmett and Alice were totally enthralled with the entire building. The entire time, their eyes were wide like saucers and their mouths were in an 'o' during the entire tour. After we were done exploring the inside, they took us out to the courtyard.

In the courtyard there was a stockade that looked really old, like it could've been from an actual ship. As soon as Emmett saw that he perked up. "I going to go put my head in the stockade!" He ran over there and put his head and wrists in the holes. The tour guide went over and tried to close the top half of the stockade over Emmett, but it didn't work. He was too big to fit. "Oh man! That sucks! Well if I can't go in there, nobody can."

"Why are you such a baby?" Edward asked. Emmett responded by crossing his arms over his chest and pouting. "My point, exactly."

Alice, then put her bag down and ran over there to put her head in the stockade. As soon as she was set, the tour guide closed the top of the stockade over her and she still had plenty of room to move around. The tour guide took out a fake gun and pointed it at her head. Jasper took a picture of her. I looked over at Emmett and he had the biggest pout on his face with his arms crossed over his chest,again. Rose was next to him rubbing his back and whispering something in his ear. It must have been what he wanted to hear because he immediately got a huge grin on his face. "I don't even want to know," Edward whispered in my ear as I chuckled.

After the picture was taken, the tour guide let us go off on our own and we were able to meander through the city. As a group, we decided to go get something to drink. Renée wanted a piña colada, so we set off to find a place that served them. We found a place on the beach and everyone got one. The teenagers got virgin drinks because we were still underage and they were really strict about carding people who didn't look old enough to drink. I was not a fan of the way rum tasted, so I was perfectly content with that. Once we got the drinks, we found an open table and made our way over to it.

Charlie and I went to get more chairs and ended up putting our drinks right next to each other. As soon as we got the chairs set up, we all sat down. I sat right next to Edward and grabbed his hand. He turned to me and gave me a small smile and began tracing patterns on the back of my hand. I grabbed my drink and took a big swig of it. I quickly regretted that.

I had accidentally picked up Charlie's drink and the only thing I tasted was the rum. I quickly spit the drink back into the cup.

"That would be my drink," Charlie informed me. _It's a little late for that._

"Ugh, you can have it. That was gross." Everyone was laughing and it made the atmosphere so light. Edward was laughing the hardest, butI didn't mind one bit. I loved to hear his laugh. It was like my own personal lullaby. After that, the conversation was continuous and light. Everybody was having a good time, and I began to let my guard down.

After we finished our drinks, Alice and Rose wanted to go look at the different stores. Esme and Renée were going, too, so I decided it would be fun to go do a girl's trip. The boys were going to look around at some other stores and we planned on meeting up again after awhile. Edward was a little apprehensive to leave me and I didn't blame him.

"Bella, are you sure you want to go? I don't have to go with the boys. I'll stay with you."

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Don't worry." He still didn't look convinced so I pulled him aside.

I grabbed both of his hands in mine, "Edward, please don't worry about this. I'll be fine."

"I know. I just don't want anything to happen to you. Especially if I can't be there for you."

I took his face in my hands and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips, "Trust me, I'll be okay. I won't be afraid. Alice and Rose will be around and they won't let me out of their sights."

As if they were listening, Alice and Rose came up on either side of Edward and wrapped one of their arms around his shoulders.

Alice spoke first, "Don't worry Edward, Rose and I will look after her."

"Yes, we will. And if any douche bag tries to get near her, then we'll beat his ass to a pulp."

Their words seemed to soothe his nerves. "Okay, I trust you guys."

Alice smiled, "A wise decision, my brother." They walked away and Edward and I were left to have a few moments to ourselves.

He wrapped his arms around me, engulfing me in his strong embrace. He pulled back and kissed my forehead. "Do you have your cell phone?"

I looked at him with a confused expression, "Of course I do. Why?"

"If anything happens, please call me." He still seemed anxious. I pulled away and rolled my eyes at him, attempting to make light of the situation.

"Edward, you're being ridiculous. Nothing is going to happen. I'll be with Alice, Rose, Esme, and Renée. They'll look out for me."

"I know but it makes me anxious to be away from you, especially now, after what happened."

I gave him a deep kiss and tried to get him to relax. "I'll be fine, I swear. Now, go hang out with the guys, or else I'll make you sleep on the couch. We'll see each other soon." A look of horror crossed his face as I mentioned him sleeping on the couch and without me in his arms. In all honesty, I hated the thought of sleeping without him, as well.

"Fine, I'll go. I don't want to sleep on the couch again. I can't sleep without you in my arms, knowing you're safe." As if to emphasize his point, he wrapped his arms around my waist again and, with all his might, he held me close to him.

**EPOV**

I let go of Bella and gave her one last kiss before she went off with the girls. "I love you," I said.

She smiled at me and said, "I love you, too." With that, she left.

I stood there for a little bit, watching her go. I felt the need to go get her and never let her go as I saw her walk off into the unfamiliar city. It made me apprehensive to see that she was a little farther away from the rest of the girls. As if Alice could sense my fear, I saw her grab Bella and link arms with her. As they got farther and farther away, Jasper came to stand next to me and put an arm around my shoulder, "Don't worry, man. Your lady friend will be fine. Alice thinks of Bella as her sister, she wouldn't let anything happen to her."

"I know but..."

"Dude, she'll be fine! Rose is with her. If anyone tried touching her, you know Rose would literally castrate them in the downtown area," Emmett said. He got a really soft expression on his face as he said the next part, "One of the things I love about Rosie, is that she doesn't let anyone mess with her family." Then he got a smirk on his face, "And, she is insanely hot and can kick some major ass!"

"You just had to ruin the moment with that last comment, didn't you?" I asked.

"What? I'm only telling the truth. I can't help it if I have a super hot, beautiful girl who can put a guy in his place!"

"Yes, well, you would know all about that, wouldn't you? She had you so whipped," Jasper added.

"She does not!" he yelled.

"Dude, yes, she does. She and Esme are the only ones who can put you in your place," I argued.

"That is not true! I-" Emmett was cut off as Carlisle interjected.

"Boys, come on now, stop fighting and lets get going. Otherwise we're never going to get to see the city."

Emmett turned to Jasper and I, and said, "Fine. But just for the record, I am not whipped by Rosalie. I just know that if I want to get any hanky panky, I have to listen to her. I'm no dumb dumb."

"You're right, you're not a, dumb dumb," he had a huge grin on his face as if he knew we would believe him, "you're just a stubborn guy who acts like a four year old." Jasper said. Emmett stuck his tongue out at Jazz and I, and I couldn't help but laugh at this. By sticking his tongue out at us, he showed his low level of maturity. It was that of a four year old.

We began our walk around the town and it was amazing. There were plenty of shops on the streets and each one was different. The locals were very nice and tried to get you to buy everything they put in your face. We kindly declined everything. As the other guys were looking at some watches, I was thinking about the end of the cruise. I knew that Bella and I were going to have to part ways eventually, but I didn't want it to be so soon. I remembered how we first met and how much she hated me at first. I was determined to get on her good side. I succeeded and didn't want to be anywhere else. I loved Bella with all my heart and I knew that, no matter what, we would remain in each other's lives. I would spend every moment I possibly could with Bella over summer but, eventually, we would have to go to college.

I didn't want to think of what would happen, come September. All I knew, was that Bella and I would be thousands of miles apart and I wanted to give her something that would remind her of me and the time we spent together, first getting to know each other. I just had no idea what to get her.

Inspiration hit me as I walked past a store that looked really nice and a little out of place for the area we were in. I stopped and looked up, noticing the name: _Tiffany & Co._ Perfect. I knew that I wanted to get Bella a piece of jewelry because she could wear it everyday, if it were simple enough and she would never had to take it off.

The guys passed me and Emmett turned around, "Hey, Edward, lets go man. We're supposed to meet the girls now. If we don't get there in time, Rosie might be mad and I probably won't get any hanky panky tonight. I need it, so can we please go now?"

Jasper walked by him and mumbled "whipped" under his breath.

"Hang on, I just want to look for something in here. I"ll be quick, don't worry."

"Fine, you get ten minutes. If you're not out by then, we're leaving you and we'll go back to the ship and tell the captain to leave you here."

I walked inside past the security guard who gave me a friendly smile. I walked straight to the case by the door and began looking. Not long after I got there, an older woman came over to me, "Hello, Sir. Can I help you find anything?"

"Hi. I'm looking for something for my girlfriend. I want it to be something simple that she can wear everyday."

"Well before we begin," she stuck her hand out for me to shake, "my name is Cheryl."

I took her hand and shook it, "Edward."

"Well, Edward, I believe we have something for you. Were you looking for a necklace, bracelet, earrings, a ring?"

"Probably a necklace."

She led me to a case full of necklaces, "Okay we have these alphabet necklaces. They're very simple, just a letter lock. What's your girlfriend's name?"

"Bella."

"That's a lovely name. She must be an amazing girl."

I smiled, "She truly is." She pulled out a simple silver chain that had a lock on it with a 'B' in the middle.

"Is this what you were looking for, or something different?"

"It's a beautiful necklace, but not exactly what I had in mind."

"Okay, well we have many more." She said as she slipped the necklace back in the case. I looked out the window and saw Emmett, who tapped his wrist like he was wearing a watch. I rolled my eyes at him and shook my head. I walked to the next case and saw it.

I stopped and Cheryl came over and said, "Ah yes, I had a feeling that this would be something more along the lines of what you were looking for." She opened the case and pulled out a necklace that had a simple silver link chain that had two hearts overlapping each other.

I stared at it and said one word, "Beautiful." _Just like my Bella_, I added in my head.

"Yes it is. Is this more along the lines of what you were looking for?"

"I think this is exactly what I've been looking for. I'll take it."

"Okay, well lets fill out the paperwork."

In a matter of minutes I had picked a necklace, filled out all the necessary papers, paid for the necklace, and was out the door. I had Cheryl just give me the box that the necklace was in so I wouldn't make it so obvious that I had something for Bella by carrying a bright blue Tiffany bag. I thanked Cheryl for all her help and walked out of the store, slipping the box in my pocket.

"Finally!" Emmett said, exasperated. "I was just about ready to leave you!"

"I told you I'd be quick."

"Yeah, whatever. Let's just get going."

We left and met the girls at the same place where we had the drinks. The girls were already there and they looked like they were too engrossed with their purchases to notice our arrival. Leave it to Emmett to make himself known.

"ROSIE!!!!! I'm home!!!" Rosalie turned around and had a murderous expression on her face. Emmett didn't seem to notice and went running to her, wrapping her up in one of his bone crushing hugs and swung her around. Her face turned from one of anger to one of happiness.

At the sound of his booming voice, Emmett not only got the attention of the girls, but of everyone within a one mile radius of us, which is hard to do seeing as how we were in the busiest area of town. I looked over at Bella who was smiling at the exchange between Emmett and Rosalie. I walked up to her and she met me halfway and jumped in my arms.

"Hey, Beautiful." I kissed her on the lips.

"Hi," she said before she kissed me back, "see, nothing happened to me, except that I missed you."

"I missed you too, Love."

"Well if you two lovebirds are done with your love exchange, I think we should head back to the ship. Emmett's hungry." Rose said.

"Hell yeah I am!! I haven't eaten in like three whole hours!!"

"Oh, and heaven forbid you don't eat every three hours, right?" Alice asked.

"Exactly. I'm a growing boy who needs to be fed, otherwise I get cranky. And nobody wants a cranky Emmett."

"No, nobody wants a cranky Emmett on their hands. Especially me, because I'll be the one who has to deal with a cranky Emmett all night so can we please go?" Rosalie added.

Bella spoke first, "Of course we can. Sorry Emmett."

I set Bella down on her feet but didn't release my hold on her completely. I kept her right hand and we walked back to the dock together.

**A/N: Light and fluffy, yes. Meaningless, no. The song for this chapter is "Funky Nassau" from "Blues Brother's 2000," a good movie and it's a catchy song. JillMH actually has the necklace that Edward got for Bella and she did get it in Nassau, hopelessromantic09 has the alphabet letter necklace, but I got mine in Hawaii. We really did do the pirate tour and it was fun. The whole piña colada incident really did happen to me. I went to go grab a chair and I ended up taking a big gulp of my dad's drink. I discovered that I didn't like the taste of rum that day. Oh, for those who don't know, hopelessromantic09 has a one shot up called "Forever's Not Enough" please go check it out and give me some feedback. Don't forget to review for this story too please!**


	23. I'm Yours

Ch. 22: I'm Yours

**Disclaimer: We do not own Twilight or Royal Caribbean, but we are the proud owners of "The Sexy Stars of Twilight" magazine!!**

**A/N: Okay, first off, we are so sorry for the delay in this chapter. We know it's been a while since we last updated, but we've had finals, graduation, planned, and unplanned surgeries, baby sitting, and college stuff. Thanks for the favorites, alerts, and reviews, we really do appreciate them all. There is an important note in the bottom A/N so please check that out. **

**EPOV**

Once we were back on the ship, for the last time, Carlisle, Esme, Charlie, and Renée decided to go have a drink at one of the bars. I didn't miss the pointed look Charlie shot me before he left. I shrugged it off, knowing he was just trying to play the father card. After they left, Alice spoke up, "Everybody up to their rooms and change into their swimsuits!" Beside me, Bella groaned. Alice heard it and was not too pleased about it. "No complaining, Bella. This is our last afternoon here and we're going to enjoy it. Now, scoot your boot!"

"Yes, Ma'am," Bella answered with a mock salute. I chuckled at her playfulness. The six of us climbed the stairs and quickly departed into our respective rooms. As soon as Bella and I stepped into the room, she reached up and placed a sweet kiss against my lips.

"What was that for?" I asked with a goofy smile on my face.

"No reason, I just missed your lips today."

"So, you're only using me for my lips?" I asked, feigning hurt by placing a hand over my heart.

"You bet your cute, little ass I am," she said as she kissed me again. I felt her smiling against my lips as I deepened the kiss.

There was a banging on the door before Alice spoke, "You guys have ten minutes to get out here before I come in and drag you out!"

"Damn it," I mumbled against Bella's lips. "You have impeccable timing, Alice," I said loud enough to be sure she heard me through the door.

"I know, it's a gift. Ten minutes!" she reminded before I heard her footsteps going back down the hall. However, I did hear her mutter, "They may be worse than Emmett and Rose," before she was out of earshot.

"I love you," Bella said as she slipped into the closet to retrieve her swimsuit. She threw my trunks at me before she shut the door.

"I love you, too," I said loud enough for her to hear me through the door. I changed quickly and retrieved a shirt from one of the drawers and my flip flops. As I sat on the bed waiting, the bathroom door opened and out stepped Bella dressed in the outfit she had on earlier and a scowl on her face. "What's wrong, Love?" I asked as I opened my arms for her.

She climbed onto my lap and muttered, "Alice."

"What did she do this time?"

"She stole all my swimsuits and left me with only one option!"

"And what would that option be?" I asked as I nuzzled my face in her hair.

"Nope, I'm not going to show you until we're at the pool. Now, let's go before the she-devil, herself, busts the door down." She stood up and walked into the bathroom, emerging with two towels and sunscreen in her hands.

I opened the door for her and, as we stepped out, we saw Alice coming towards us in a cover up. "What is that?" she screeched, pointing at Bella's choice of wardrobe.

"Did you honestly expect me to walk through crowds of people in the swimsuit you picked out?"

"Obviously not, but what happened to the cover up I left for you?"

"What was it supposed to cover? That thing was miniscule! I'm not changing my mind or my clothes, so let's just go," Bella said with finality.

I leaned down and whispered in her ear, "You don't know how sexy you are when you're angry." As I predicted, Bella blushed. I took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. The pool wasn't as crowded as I was expecting it to be, so we were all able to find lounge chairs next to each other. Bella was looking around nervously. I went up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. "Don't worry about what other people think. I'm sure you look beautiful in your swimsuit."

She turned around in my arms and stood up on her tip toes to give me a kiss. "Thank you, Edward." She untangled herself from my grasp and said, "Turn around." I complied with her request, eager to see what Alice had forced her into. I threw my own shirt off and heard the rustle of clothes as Bella took her shorts and shirt off. "Okay, I'm ready," she said meekly. I turned around and I swear my jaw hit the floor. The bikini was white, black, and gray checkered pattern. It showed off Bella's body and fit perfectly. "I knew it looked bad," she said as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

I stepped up to her and gently unfolded her arms. "You look beautiful, Love."

She scoffed, "You have to say that because you're my boyfriend."

"I may be your boyfriend, but if I'm lying, then would you mind telling me why every guy here has a puddle of drool at their feet?" She looked around and noticed that all the guys' eyes were fixed on her.

Bella buried her face in my chest and mumbled, "Why me?"

"I can kick their asses for you, Love. I don't like the way they're looking at you, either." I practically growled the last part. I got a small chuckle from her. "I love you," I whispered into her ear as I kissed her hair.

She returned the sentiment as she reached down to grab the bottle of sunscreen. We both applied generous amounts of sunscreen so we wouldn't burn. "Edward?"

"Yeah, Love?" I asked as I was just finishing with my arms.

"Could you do my back, please?"

"Of course." I grabbed the bottle from her out stretched hand and stood behind her. Before I began, I gently kissed her shoulders. She shivered under my touch and, if I'm not mistaken, moaned, eliciting a smile from me. I kissed every part of her back before I followed with the sunscreen. As my hands glided over her back, I marveled at how flawless every part of her seemed to be. When I was finished, Bella was leaning against me as I supported the majority of her weight. "My turn," I said into her ear. She jumped and I laughed. "Did you have a nice nap?" I asked through my bouts of laughter.

"It's not my fault I'm so sensitive to your touch," she huffed as she took the bottle from my hand. We switched positions and she began the same routine that I had done to her. I groaned as her hands descended upon my skin and felt like they were shooting electrical sparks into me. Now I knew what she had meant. I involuntarily closed my eyes and relaxed under her touch. She finished before I wanted her to, but I knew that we couldn't spend our entire time putting sunscreen on each other. That would've been a waste of product. I sat down in one of the lounge chairs and pulled Bella down so she was sitting in front of me. She leaned forward and gave me a chaste kiss, which I didn't hesitate to turn into a full on make out session.

"Geez, Edward, you're going to eat her face off if you don't stop soon," Emmett bellowed. I flipped him off without breaking our connection, causing him to start laughing in hysterics. I slowed my kisses down and ended our make out session by placing a soft kiss on the corner of Bella's lips.

"Come on, Bella!" Alice called as she grabbed Bella's arm and dragged her towards the pool where Rosalie was already waiting.

"Somebody's a little excited," Emmett said as he took a seat in the chair next to me. I looked at him with confusion. He quickly looked down at my lap and then back up. I followed his gaze and noticed a very obvious bulge in my shorts.

"Oh shit. Now Bella's going to think I'm a pervert or something."

"Geez, Edward, she's not going to think that. Just think of grandmas with saggy boobs or something like that," Emmett advised with a laugh.

I started imagining what Emmett suggested and, thankfully, my little problem started shrinking. Once I was in control of myself, I jumped into the pool right beside Alice and Bella.

"EDWARD!!!" they all shrieked as I emerged from the water. I just started laughing. Not a good idea when two of the people you're laughing at tend to hold a grudge. Rose and Alice started rapidly sending waves of water towards me. I did the same back to them but knew I was in trouble once I accidentally splashed Bella. She stood with her mouth agape before her expression turned to a devious smile. "You're going to pay!" she yelled as she joined Alice and Rose in their quest to soak me even more.

"A little help here!" I said to Emmett and Jasper.

"No way, Man, you started it on your own, so you're going to finish it on your own," Emmett said.

"You should have known better than to mess with the girls," Jazz informed me as they walked away.

"Traitors!" I yelled to them across the pool, earning glances from people around us. I saw their shoulders shaking with laughter as they continued on their way. "Okay, okay! I give! White flag!" I surrendered to the girls.

"It's about time you gave up. I was beginning to think we would have to get Em and Jazz in here to help us," Alice said, a little breathless from our water fight.

I looked towards Bella and she still looked mad, but cute, with her arms crossed in front of her chest. I knew I was in the dog house, so to speak, so I used my secret weapon against her. I flashed her my crooked smile as I made my way closer to her. "Love, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to get you wet, you just happened to be standing in my line of fire. Do you forgive me?" I saw that she wasn't going to give in easily, so I dropped the smile and replaced it with a frown, casting my eyes downward. I looked up at her through my lashes and saw her resolve wavering. I tried one last thing, "Please?" I pleaded.

"Aw, Baby," I smiled at the term of endearment, "didn't anybody ever tell you?" she asked innocently.

Now I was thoroughly confused. "Tell me what?"

"That payback's a bitch." As soon as the words left her mouth, she, along with Rosalie and Alice jumped on me, dunking me under the water. I surfaced, coughing up water that I swallowed from the surprise attack. I looked around and the girls were already out of the pool and in the hot tub with Emmett and Jasper as if nothing had happened. I climbed out of the pool and joined them, taking my seat next to Bella.

"Enjoy your drink?" Alice asked with a smirk.

"Very much so, thank you for asking," I replied sarcastically. Jasper and Emmett gave me looks that said, '_We told you.'_ We chatted for a few minutes before Charlie, Renée, Esme, and Carlisle came by and told us that they had something planned for us. I got out of the hot tub first and held my hand out to Bella, trying to make sure she didn't trip on anything. I grabbed her towel and wrapped it, along with my arms, around her slim frame. "I love you," I said as I whispered into her ear. She turned around and returned the sentiment. Once we had gathered the rest of our belongings, I took her hand, once again, and followed our parents to the stair cases.

**BPOV**

As soon as I stepped into the room, Edward had shut the door and had me pinned up against it. "You have no idea how tempting you look in that swimsuit," he said as he started trailing kisses across my jaw and down to my neck. I tilted my head to allow him better access while my breathing started to become ragged. Once he had kissed his trail from my jaw to my neck, he attacked my lips with a ferocity I had never seen in him before, placing his hands on either side of my face. I had a feeling that Alice had imagined something like this happening, which would explain the absence of the swimsuits I had packed and the mysterious appearance of the 'Alice approved' one.

I don't think anyone could have anticipated what happened next, however. Edward slid his hands from my face, down my arms, to my wrists. He grasped one in each of his large hands and practically threw them against the door. Flashes of my encounter with Will started flooding my mind.

_The way he grabbed my wrists, me almost positive he was going to leave bruises._ I started to shake.

_The way he pressed his body against mine, rubbing his erection on my thigh._ Tears started to sting my eyes.

_The way he threw me on the bed and was just about to rip my clothes from my body._ "Edward," I barely managed to whimper out.

He didn't stop. Instead, his kisses became rougher and his grip on my wrists tightened.

"Edward, please. Stop," I said.

His lips had moved down to my neck again, but this time, they didn't stop at my collar bones. They continued down until they met the swell of my breasts.

It was too much. I gathered all the strength I could and pushed against him, sending him stumbling backwards as I sank down against the door, the sobs relentlessly taking over my body. "Bella?" Edward asked, confusion clear in his voice. When I responded by curling into my self, I could hear the panic take over. "Bella, Love?! What's wrong?!" He reached out and touched my shoulder.

I flinched away from his touch. "Don't," I choked out. I peeked out over my arms that were concealing me from him. What I saw broke my heart.

Edward was hurt because I had refused his touch, especially when I needed him the most. But, I just couldn't do it. Not yet, anyway. He slouched down against the foot of the bed, I'm assuming to give me space. His usually vibrant green eyes now shone with tears, tears that I had caused. "What the hell have I done?" he said to no one in particular. "What should I do? Call Carlisle? No, that would only worsen the situation. Charlie? No, he'd kill me, which would hurt Bella even more." He bent his knees up, rested his elbows on them, while he roughly pulled at his hair, at a loss as to what to do. I didn't even know what needed to be done.

I continued to cry for, what seemed like, hours while my heart continued to break for him. What surprised me the most was the anger I felt, knowing that I was the cause of his anguish and I was powerless to stop it. I would have given anything to take away his pain, but I knew that I had to take care of myself first. I knew that Edward was not Will and that he would never hurt me but, for some reason, my instincts couldn't comprehend that and, as a result I had shut him out. Will had almost violated me in the worst way possible and Edward had only ever shown me love and compassion. Why my mind continued to close itself off, I would never know. What I did know was that I needed to show Edward, and myself for that matter, that I needed him. I needed him more than I needed oxygen to breathe.

The tears had not stopped blazing trails down my cheeks, but I was starting to get my breathing under control. I looked back to Edward and saw that he had wrapped his arms around his legs and had his forehead resting against his knees, his body shaking with his quiet sobs. That was the deciding factor.

I slowly uncurled myself and started crawling towards Edward. Once I reached him, I unwrapped his arms from his legs and replaced them so they were around me. I climbed onto his lap as he tightened his grip around me, almost as if he were afraid he was going to lose me to my demons again. I threw my arms around his neck as a fresh round of tears streamed down my face. "I am so sorry, Love," he cried. "I never meant to hurt you." I felt my the moisture from his eyes running down my bare shoulder as we cried together, him for 'hurting' me and me for finally feeling safe in his arms, once again.

**A/N: Well? Did you see that one coming?? We know we didn't. The song for this chapter is "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz. On Youtube, there is a guy called jberklee103 and he does a cover of this song and it is so good. Nothing will ever be as good as the original, but it is a wonderful cover! You must go check it out, as well as his other videos, they're amazing!! The links for Bella's swimsuit, the necklace from the previous chapter, and jberklee103's page will be up on our profiles. This story will be ending soon. We're not sure if we should do a sequel or extend this past the cruise. What do you guys think? Let us know in a review or a PM. But please, before you let us know, truly think about this. We really want your guy's opinion on this so let us know! Reviews are nice and make us do happy dances!!!**


	24. Goodbye My Lover

Ch. 23: Goodbye, My Lover

**A/N: What's up Buttercups?? Thanks so much for the story/author alerts, favorite story/author, and the reviews!! A special thank you to hgbkwrm for getting our butts in gear and for the all-nighters!! Another big thank you to lauren loves spunky for keeping hopelessromantic09 in the game. You keep her sane and make her laugh!!! And thank you to Flightlessbird11 for letting us bounce ideas off of her and for giving extraordinary advice!! If you guys haven't, you need to go read hgbkwrm's story **_**Cedar Springs**_**, it's so good and well written!! And you should also check out Flightlessbird11's story, **_**Someone To Watch Over Me**_**, it's very good!! We're obsessed with those two stories!! Please read the bottom author's note for important, exciting information! **

**BPOV**

"I'm sorry, Baby," I cried as I clung to Edward as if my life depended on it. Both of our tears had not ceased to flow but we never let each other go. I had my hands stroking the hair at the nape of his neck and my head buried in the side of his neck, inhaling his scent in an attempt to calm myself down. Nothing could compare to the guilt I harbored from what I had just put the both of us through and it showed by the way we were not willing to let go of each other.

"Please, Love, don't apologize," he responded. Edward's cries were not nearly as hysterical as mine seemed to be, but they were still present. He had one arm wrapped around my back, the other running his fingers through my damp hair. He had his face nestled in my hair and, occasionally, I would hear him inhale deeply, knowing he was trying to stop his tears, as well.

For some irrational reason, his refusal to let me apologize made my tears come faster. I nuzzled my head even deeper into his neck as I whimpered, "Don't leave me."

"Never," he said. "Nothing you do can ever keep me away from you," he vowed in a voice barely above a whisper. He continued to thread his fingers in my hair as his tears eventually subsided. Once he had his emotions under control, he started humming the song he had written for me. I removed my fingers from his hair and wrapped my arms around his shoulders in a vice-like grip as the last of my tears were shed. He held me tighter to him before gently pushing me away and meeting my gaze. I tried to tear my eyes from his and focus on anything else, but he wasn't having it. "Please look at me, Sweetheart," he pleaded while taking my chin between his thumb and forefinger, forcing me to look at him. "What happened, Bella?" he asked, his eyes bloodshot from the hard crying he had done.

"Honestly, I don't know. One minute, I was enjoying what we were doing, and the next, I was getting flashes of Will and what he did." As I listened to my shaky voice, a single tear escaped from the corner of my eye.

Edward's lips descended over it, kissing it away as his thumbs tenderly wiped away the remainder of the thousands of tears I had shed. "I will never let him hurt you again, Love. Please remember that."

"I know. I guess what he did affected me more than I realized. It's only been a day, but I'm tired of crying and I'm tired of cringing away from people who resemble him. I just want to move on from this and get on with my life without the constant fear of being hurt again." As I vented, my voice grew stronger with the realization I had come to.

Edward smiled at me. "That's my girl," he said before he gently kissed the corner of my mouth. "I love you."

"I know, I love you, too," I said as my eyes closed in contentment. I didn't know what I would have to do to move past Will, but I knew that whatever I decided, I would have Edward right by my side.

"Bella? Edward?" Esme called through the door.

"It's open," Edward called just loud enough to be heard through the door.

Esme came bustling in seconds later. We had resumed our previous position with our arms secured around the other and our faces buried in the other. "Why aren't you two dressed yet? We have to be there in ten minutes, you better – oh my! What happened? What's wrong?" she asked in a panic as Edward looked up at her and she caught sight of his red-rimmed eyes.

"Do you want to tell her, or should I?" Edward whispered so Esme couldn't hear.

"You, please," I said before I tried to hide from my embarrassment by curling myself closer to his body.

He kissed my temple before he spoke, "Bella freaked out a little bit because she saw flashes of the attack while we were kissing."

Esme gasped in shock. "Oh, dear! Are you alright, Sweetie?" she asked with motherly concern as I felt her soft touch on my arm.

I removed my face from Edward's neck and turned in his lap so my back was against his chest. "I'm okay, now. Thank you, Esme."

Once Esme was satisfied that I really was alright, she turned back to Edward. "That explains why Bella was crying, but why are your eyes red, Honey?"

Edward spoke softly, "It hurts, Mom. It hurts to see her hurting. To see her in pain, emotional or physical, is too much. I didn't know what to do, so I just broke down." I could hear the emotion in his voice and see the tears shimmering, threatening to spill over again and, once again, felt bad for putting him through that. I placed my hand over his that was on my waist, threading our fingers together and rubbing soothing circles on the top of his hand.

"Oh, Honey, it hurt because Bella has become such an important part in your life, no matter how short of a time you two have been together. She is a part of you as much as you are a part of her." The three of us sat in silence for a few moments before Esme spoke again. "Would you still like to join us for the surprise?"

I turned my head back to look at Edward as he looked down at me. "I'm up for it as long as you are, Love," he said before placing a kiss softer than a butterfly's touch on my forehead.

I thought back to what I had figured I had to do and knew that the first step in overcoming this was looking me right in the face. "Yeah, I need to do this."

Esme stuck her hand out and helped me up from my position on Edward's lap before pulling me into a hug of her own. "I want you to know that I already think of you as one of my own," she whispered.

"Thank you," was the only thing I thought to say, even though it wasn't nearly enough. In truth, I thought of Esme as a second mother. I had known this woman for less than a week and she had already secured a place in my heart, along with the rest of Edward's family. When Esme let me go, Edward hugged me close to him before Esme made him let go so we could change into different clothes. Once I emerged from the bathroom, Edward took his spot next to me, curling his arm around me and pulling me into his side. I threw both of my arms around him, even though it made it more difficult for me to walk. I wasn't about to put space between us if it wasn't necessary.

Esme ushered us out the door and, as she passed, I could've sworn I heard her say to Edward, "Don't let her go," before she walked ahead, leading us to where everyone else was waiting.

As soon as Alice caught sight of us, she charged over to us at her usual hyper pixie speed. "What took you guys so long? We've been waiting for you for-" Alice slowly trailed off once she realized something major had happened.

"Alice, just drop it, please," Esme chided.

"What's wrong, Bells?" my dad asked as we made it to the rest of the group. "What did you do to her? I thought I told you never to hurt her!" he bellowed. Renée had grabbed onto his arm in an attempt to calm the raging beast.

"Dad, stop! Edward didn't do anything." I felt Edward stiffen at my words and shot him a look so he wouldn't argue with what I had said. Knowing him, he would shoulder all the blame. "I had flashes of Will and I freaked. Edward didn't hurt me, he helped me." I could see that Charlie believed my words, no matter how much he didn't want to. Nobody said anything else, but I could tell from the looks on their faces that they were worried. "I'm fine, really," I said as I flashed them all a smile.

I guess Emmett had decided he had had enough of the turn of events. "So, what's the big surprise?" he asked in his booming voice.

"Volume," Carlisle scolded. Emmett pretended to zip his lips shut and throw away the key. Carlisle seemed satisfied, so he continued, "Well, we decided that to celebrate our final night on the cruise, we would participate in a little game."

"How do you guys feel about a few rounds of Battle of the Sexes?" my mom asked. We all agreed enthusiastically.

"Okay, let's head down to Ixtapa Lounge.

Once we made it to the lounge, we were greeted by Shane, who led us backstage and briefed us on what was going to happen.

During the entire explanation, Edward never let go of me once. In all honesty, I was glad he didn't. I felt that what happened in the room brought us closer and I knew that when he would go back to Washington tomorrow, it was going to be harder than I ever imagined.

The chatter of all the people in the lounge could be heard from backstage. The energy surrounding us was exciting and invigorating. "Come on, Bella!" Alice called as she came up to us and pulled me away from Edward.

"Where?" I asked.

"Away from the boys. We can't have you divulging our secrets to the enemies!" she said in a voice that said her request, demand seemed like a better word, was obvious. Edward and I mouthed 'I love you,' to each other before Alice led me to the rest of my teammates, who were standing twenty feet away from the guys. "Alright, Ladies," Alice began, "I think it's about time we show these boys which sex is more superior. Are we ready?" A resounding 'Yes!' filled the area. I looked around the little circle we had formed at my mom, Esme, Rosalie, and, of course, Alice. No matter what had happened to me on this vacation, I considered it the best I had ever taken because it led me to Edward and the rest of the Cullens. And, I was fairly certain that my mom and dad had made lifelong friends in Carlisle and Esme.

Soon after our little powwow, Shane came back. "Are you guys ready for this?"

Alice just glared at him and huffed. "'Guys'?"

Shane had a contemplative look on his face as he, I assumed, went over what he had said. "Oh, excuse me. Are you girls and guys ready for this?" he restated his question.

"Much better," Alice said with a smile, "and yes, we are." The rest of us just shook our heads in amusement.

Shane then ran out to the stage and welcomed the cruisers that showed up for the show. He gave a short speech before he introduced us. "In true gentlemanly fashion, we will introduce the ladies first. Come on out Esme, Renee, Rosalie, Alice, and Bella!" I followed them out onto the stage, blushing furiously as I heard catcalls coming from many of the guys in the audience. There were five chairs set up on each side of the stage and we each took a seat on one side. "And now for the gentlemen. Please welcome Carlisle, Charlie, Emmett, Jasper, and Edward!" The boys walked out onto the stage looking as cocky as ever when they heard the girls screaming in support. Edward even had the nerve to wink at me. I knew then that we had to do whatever it took to win the game.

"Okay, the rules are fairly simple. I will ask each team ten questions regarding the opposite sex; whoever answers the most correctly, wins. Is everybody ready?" Shane asked. The crowd erupted into cheers that echoed throughout the lounge.

"Hell yeah! Let's do this!!" Emmett yelled!

"Emmett. Language." Esme chastised from across the stage.

He hung his head in shame, "Sorry mom." The crowd got a good laugh out of that one.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen, this first question is for the guys. In what article of clothing will you most likely find the use of the word 'kitten'?"

"Lingerie!!" Emmett yelled before they even had a chance to discuss the possible answers.

"Emmett!" Edward yelled. "What are you thinking? We haven't even talked about our answer yet!" he growled while pinching the bridge of his nose. We started laughing at their 'strategy'.

He turned around and pulled them into a huddle. I'm positive he meant to whisper, but that didn't turn out too well, so we were able to hear what he was saying. "Dude, don't worry about it. I got this."

Jasper whispered something before Emmett spoke again. "It's so obvious, isn't it?" He looked at all of the men before he answered his own question. "Haven't you guys ever heard of a 'sex kitten' before?" We assumed that Carlisle was trying to convince him to think about the answer more, but he wasn't having it. "No," he turned to us smiling, "our final answer is lingerie."

"I swear," Esme whispered to us, "that boy does not know how to control his volume."

"Are you sure 'lingerie' is your final answer?" Shane asked. Emmett nodded but the rest of the guys were shaking their heads, knowing that it was not the correct answer. "'Lingerie' is…wrong!"

He threw his hands up in anger, "What?!?! How can that be wrong? A sex kitten!! Lingerie! Come on!"

I looked to my teammates before we all started laughing. Shane's voice brought our attention back to the game at hand. "Alice, would you like to provide the boys with the correct answer?" he asked.

She smiled widely, "So sorry for your loss, boys, but the correct answer is shoes, as in kitten heel." When Alice noticed the blank stares on their faces, she elaborated. "A kitten heel is one that is 1 ½ to 2 inches tall," she informed them with a smug smile. I looked back to the guys and saw that they were glaring at Emmett. Well, all of them except Jasper, who was smiling widely at Alice.

Carlisle spoke up, "Well, I think we have learned a valuable lesson: talk about the answer, before we decide on a final answer." He gave a pointed look to Emmett. "Does everybody understand?" he clarified. They all nodded, while still managing to glare at Emmett, as we laughed more. "Good."

"Now," Shane said, "it's the ladies' turn." We readjusted in our seats to make sure we were all paying attention to the question. "Since the start of production in 1957, what was the first year in which there were no Corvettes made?"

We had our poker faces on before turning around in a huddle. I peeked up at the guys and saw that they were whispering to each other. Emmett still hadn't got the point of whispering, so we were still able to hear him clearly. "Positive. She knows cars, but not the history of them, especially for one year in particular. Don't worry little brother, we got this."

"Come on, ladies, we need to show these boys that there's more to us girls than just our looks," Renée said, "Even you, Bella." She probably saw the look of doubt I had on my face. "Rosalie, you know about cars, correct?" my mom asked.

"All there is to know about them. Emmett doesn't know this, but I've been brushing up on my history of cars and I just finished a book about Corvettes. The answer is 1983." We agreed to trust her and broke from our huddle.

"Have you come up with your answer?" Shane asked. We nodded and Rosalie stepped forward.

She looked Emmett straight in the eye before she spoke, "Our final answer is 1983." I knew we had the right answer when Emmett's jaw practically hit the floor and started stuttering, unable to speak.

"Correct!" Shane exclaimed. "And very impressive, might I say."

"How the hell did you know that? I thought you didn't know anything about the history of cars? What the fuck happened?!" Emmett shouted, oblivious to everyone around him.

"Emmett Cullen! If I have to reprimand you for your vulgar use of language one more time, I swear I will throw you over my knee," Esme scolded. Emmett looked down in embarrassment as everyone laughed.

Rosalie took over, then. "For your information, I've been doing a little light reading. I've particularly taken an interest in Corvettes. I'm surprised. I thought you would've noticed all the books on the nightstand," Rosalie said. I detected a slight hint of venom in her voice as she spoke.

"Okay! After the first round of questions, the score is, Men: 0, Ladies: 1. I have a feeling this game is going to get very interesting. You better step it up, guys. These ladies are going to give you a run for your money," Shane advised. "Now, to continue…"

After the first round of questioning, the boys sobered up and actually took the time to think over and discuss their answers before they came to a final conclusion. I was actually impressed by how much they knew about 'feminine topics'. What surprised me the most, was that Charlie was actually getting really into the game and contributed to the discussions on more than one occasion. The guys had answered seven out of the eight following questions correctly. We had missed one question about 'dropping the ball'. None of us had any idea that that term is predominantly from baseball. During the entire game, I didn't miss the 'secret' glances Edward would give me. Each time, I would smile at him before returning my focus to the game

"Gentlemen, this next question will be your final one and you must answer it correctly in order to stay in the game. Are you ready for the final question?" Shane asked our guys. They all nodded enthusiastically, so he continued. "Which sign of the zodiac is symbolized by a woman?"

Once again, they huddled close together. Sometime during the game, Emmett finally grasped the concept of whispering, so we could no longer hear what they were discussing. Personally, I knew little about the signs of the zodiac and, according to the blank faces on the rest of their faces, neither did Esme, Renée, Alice, or Rosalie. If we didn't know this question, I was pretty sure the guys wouldn't.

They broke apart and Jasper took the liberty of answering. "Virgo is symbolized by a woman."

"Virgo is correct! Congratulations, gentlemen. Now, ladies, in order to win the game, you must correctly answer the following question," Shane said. I was nervous by then and I'm sure everyone else was feeling the pressure. "Your final question is true or false. Men have a ridge on their skulls above their eyebrow that women do not."

We circled around for the final time. "It's a 50/50 shot of getting this one right," Esme said. "And, I'm fairly certain that, during one of Carlisle's monologues about the human anatomy, he mentioned something about that ridge. I can't recall whether or not it exists above their eyebrow, but it's worth a shot. What do you girls think?"

"It's more than I knew, so I say we go with true," I said. My mom, Rosalie, and Alice agreed.

Esme stepped forward and answered, "We believe the answer is true."

"This statement is…" Shane paused for a while for a dramatic effect, "true! And, we have our winners! Congratulations girls!" The five of us started jumping up and down and screaming in victory. "Sorry guys, but it seems as though the ladies know more than we believed. Now, go over there and congratulate the winners," he encouraged.

Edward didn't hesitate in running over to me. Before I realized what had happened, he had picked me up and was spinning me around. "Congratulations, Love! With Emmett on our team, I knew we were screwed from the beginning," he joked. I slapped Edward on the arm for his comment.

"Hey! I heard that!" Emmett yelled above Rosalie's head. "And, thanks, Bella!"

I laughed, "No problem, Em." Edward placed his lips on mine in that second, effectively shutting me up. I faintly heard Alice chanting, "Boys drool and girls rule!" but I was too occupied to care.

The audience we had gained had cleared out of the lounge by the time Edward released his hold on me. "Let's blow this pop stand, I'm starving," Emmett said.

"I swear, Emmett, you're like a bottomless pit. You eat practically every couple hours," Jasper observed. "And, don't say you're a growing boy. That excuse lost its validity after you turned eighteen."

We left the lounge in high spirits. Even the guys weren't being sore losers and were happy. I had my arm wrapped around Edward's waist and Alice had threaded her arm through my free one. She was reminiscing about our trip and told me how this was her favorite vacation the Cullens had ever taken. I was fairly positive that the Cullens had been to more places than I could ever imagine, so I knew that her statement was genuine. After we reached our floor, we all separated into our respective rooms to change for our final dinner aboard the ship.

**EPOV**

"I am so tired," Bella said as she flopped down onto the bed. I shut the door behind me and lay down next to her, pulling her close to my side.

"I know, Love. Once dinner's done and over with, we can come back here and relax. We have a long day of travelling tomorrow, so we need our rest," I reasoned as I ran my fingers through her hair.

"Edward, I'm not going home tomorrow," she said. My fingers ceased their motions

"What do you mean you aren't coming home tomorrow?" I asked, thoroughly confused.

"Renée and Charlie decided we were going to stay in Florida for a few days longer. Believe me when I say that, if I had my way, I'd go home with you in a heartbeat."

My mind was reeling. I had just assumed that Bella and I would be on the same flights back to Washington like we were on our way to Florida. I wasn't ready to let her go yet, even if it was only for a few days. I pulled Bella on top of me and wrapped my arms tightly around her. "I'm not ready to leave you. These past few days have, by far, been the best of my life, and that's all thanks to you. I have never felt so strongly about somebody and never thought it was possible after Tanya."

"I know, Baby, but it's only for three days. The second we leave the airport, I'm coming to see you, no matter what Charlie, or anybody else for that matter, says. I love you, and that's never going to change," she said as she kissed away the tears that I didn't know were falling. I didn't know what was going on, but my emotions have been on a roller coaster ride and back again and it has resulted in me shedding more tears than I have in my whole lifetime. In seven days, I had experienced heartbreak, anger, contentment, excitement, helplessness, sorrow, worry, jealousy, and most of all, love. My tears continued to flow down my face as I nuzzled my face into Bella's neck as she rubbed my scalp and whispered "I love you" in my ear, trying to soothe me. We stayed like that until the warm liquid stopped their trails down my face and when it did, I thanked Bella for more than what she had just done for me.

After I sobered up, Bella and I got up and packed up our belongings that we wouldn't need for tomorrow so that we could put our luggage outside the door to have it picked up. We finished getting ready for dinner and I had a notion that it wasn't going to be the carefree, fun evening we had all grown accustomed to. Bella and I walked down the stairs and walked to our table. As I predicted, nobody was smiling or joking like we usually did. After I helped Bella into her chair, I took my seat between her Jasper. "What's up, Man?" he asked as I was looking over my menu.

I sighed, "Nothing much. I'm definitely not looking forward to tomorrow, that's for sure."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I'm not ready to leave, either. It's relaxing out here, a nice change."

I made sure Bella was busy talking to Rose before I spoke. "It's not just that. Bella's not coming back with us. She said that Charlie and Renée planned for them to stay in Florida for a few more days, once we got back to the mainland. Honestly, Jazz, I don't know what I'm going to do with myself, knowing she's going to be on the other side of the country. What if something happens to her and I'm not there to protect her, like with Will? God, I sound like an idiot. I've only known her for seven days, but she's already changed me so much. I'm going to go insane without her near me."

"Edward, just relax. I'm sure that Charlie and Renée wouldn't be stupid enough to let Bella wander around Florida alone. They're probably going to be with her the entire time and will be there to make sure she's safe. Think about what you're worrying is going to do to her. I know you want her to be happy, but that's not going to be possible if she knows you went back home in a bad mood. You need to show her that she needs to have a good time and you'll be waiting for her when she gets back."

"That's easy for you to say, you're not the one who is going to leave the love of your life."

"She's not leaving you, and you're not leaving her. She's going on a vacation, for Christ's sake. And, it's only three days. It'll go by so fast and you'll be busy unpacking and returning to reality, that it will seem like you were only separated for a few hours. Have faith in your relationship and cherish it."

"How and when did you get so damn philosophical?" I asked with a laugh. Everything he said was true and I planned to do what I could to stop sulking. If anything, our separation would strengthen our bond.

"Eh, it's a gift," he said as he brushed off his shoulders. I could already feel some of the tension that had built up within less than an hour melting away. After we ordered our food, I felt Bella's hand on my thigh as I was talking to Jasper again. I glanced back at her and saw all the love she held for me, for some unfathomable reason, beaming in her deep, brown eyes. As I stared back at her, I knew that I would embrace our time apart and it would just make our reunion that much sweeter.

Eventually, the normal chatter that I associated with our dinners picked up and everybody seemed to want to make the most of the time we had left on the ship. Alice has switched seats with Emmett and was now talking animatedly to Rosalie and Bella. I had slipped my arm around the back of Bella's chair and she leaned her back into my side as I talked with Jasper and Emmett. Surprisingly, Emmett seemed to be acting more mature than his usual self, so Jasper and I were able to hold a conversation with him without him making some kind of joke or uncalled for comment. As per usual, Carlisle and Esme were in deep conversation with Renée and Charlie. Once our dinner plates were taken away, we sat back and enjoyed the song and dance that all the waiters took part in. Baked Alaska was the specialty dessert that night and all the couples ordered one to share. Before our desserts came, there was a group of people who were celebrating a birthday. They started singing their version of "Happy Birthday" and clapping. Alice and Emmett didn't hesitate to join them in the celebration and started singing and clapping with them. By the end of their song, our entire level of the dining room was joining them. We were all smiling and laughing when we were finished, and it couldn't have been a better ending to our vacation. I had the love of my life, who was smiling radiantly, by my side and my best friends and family with me.

After dinner, I think it was a unanimous decision to spend some time with each of our significant others to enjoy the last few hours of our little home away from home however way we pleased. Carlisle and Esme were actually the first to leave the table, followed shortly by Charlie and Renée.

"What do you say we test the strength of the bed frame, Rosie?" Emmett asked in true Emmett fashion. Rosalie rewarded him with a slap upside his head before eagerly pulling him from the table.

"Come on, Jazzy. I think we can definitely give those Em and Rose a run for their money on rocking this boat," Alice said with a devilish smirk plastered on her face.

"Whatever you say, Darlin'." They left the table hot on the heels of Emmett and Rosalie.

I pulled Bella onto my lap and hugged her close to me. "What would you like to do now, Love?"

She snuggled into my chest as she answered, "I don't care. I feel like I've chosen everything we've done so far. I think it's about time you choose something."

I pretended to think about what I wanted to do when, in reality, I knew what I would choose as soon as she gave me the opportunity. "Let's go back to the room, Love." Bella stiffened in my arms. "Relax, Love, we don't have to do anything. I just want to spend some time with you without the interruption of anything. You are setting the pace and I'm not going to do anything that you're not comfortable with."

"Ugh, I'm sorry. I know you're not going to do anything, I'm just overreacting."

"No one blames you, Love. Come on," I placed Bella on her feet and stood up, taking her hand in mine. I led her back up to her room, sneaking kisses when people weren't paying attention to us, which was often. When we got into the room, Bella pulled me to the bed and down next to her. She reached over me to grab the remote, and turned on the TV. "Do you want to watch a movie?" she asked.

"Whatever you want, Love."

"Thanks, you're such a big help," she said sarcastically.

I laughed, "I'm sorry, but you asked me what I wanted to do. I told you I just wanted to be with you. I got my request granted, so whatever we do now is all up to you."

"You are unbelievable, Edward Cullen," she said just as she was selecting a movie.

"Unbelievably good, or unbelievably bad?" I whispered into her ear as I held her tighter to my body.

"Both," she barely got out. I chuckled again at how much I affected her. If she were to have done the same thing to me, I'm positive I would have been speechless and would have made a fool of myself. I finally decided to pay attention to the movie Bella had chosen. The beginning of _Transformers_ flashed on the screen. I sat up against the headboard and situated Bella so she was sitting in between my legs with her leaning back against my chest. Her hands came to rest on my thighs again.

About half an hour into the movie, Bella began rubbing her hands up and down my legs. They began drifting higher and higher with each pass and I had to suppress an embarrassing groan. "Love, you have to stop," I said as I reluctantly pulled her hands away from my legs and placed them at her sides. That seemed to work for the next five minutes. Ever so slowly, her hands ventured back to resume their journey they had begun. This time, however, I wasn't able to keep in the groan that was building within my chest. "Bella," I growled, "stop." She turned in my lap so she was facing me and crashed her lips to mine with her hands scratching at my scalp.

"I don't want to stop, Edward. I want to do this for you. For me. For us. I need to do this, Edward, please?" My willpower was slowly dissolving and I was powerless to stop it. I nodded for her to continue, not realizing what I was agreeing to. When she replaced her lips to mine, her hands found their way to the front of my shirt and started unbuttoning the buttons, her nails lightly scratching down my chest. I fought hard to keep myself from throwing her under me and taking her right then and there. Once all the buttons were undone on my shirt, Bella pulled me forward so she could slide the material down my arms. I felt her tongue tracing my lip, begging for entrance, which I quickly granted.

Before I knew what had happened, Bella had thrown my pants off and had her hand down my boxers, grabbing my cock. I was surprised that Bella wasn't blushing as I would have guessed she would have been. She swiftly removed my boxers, throwing them across the room where my jeans supposedly ended up and began a slow, torturous rhythm with her hand. "Oh, God," I hissed into her mouth. I could already feel the tightening in my lower stomach and knew I wasn't going to last long. Bella continued her steady rhythm and I began thrusting my hips into her small hand, wanting to relieve the tension that was painfully building up in my balls. Bella went one step further and licked away the bead of pre-cum that had built up at my slit before slipping the head of my cock into her mouth and it surprised the hell out of me. "Bella, move!" I commanded afraid to cum in her mouth. She ignored my warning and with a growl that sounded completely animalistic, I came into her mouth. It was, by far, the hardest I had ever cum and the best orgasm I had ever felt. I felt her start to gag and tried to pull away, but she kept me firmly in my mouth, greedily lapping up every last bit of my cum into her mouth.

I pulled her up and laid her on my chest before pulling the covers over us. She wiggled to get into a more comfortable position and the friction that her jeans caused against my overly sensitive cock was almost too much. I grabbed her hips and stilled her motions. "Unless you want a repeat performance, you're going to have to stop moving." She giggled and pressed her cheek against my rapidly beating heart. "Thank you, Love. You have no idea how much that meant to me and how good it felt."

"So I did alright?" she asked innocently as she brought her hand up to my hair and began stroking it.

"Love, if I didn't know any better, I would've sworn that you'd never done anything like that before. Not to sound ungrateful, but why did you do it? I would've been perfectly content with just holding you."

She took a moment to collect her thoughts before she spoke, "I told you that I was done with feeling so helpless and afraid all the time. I need to move on and I figured pleasing you would be a good first step."

"Well, whatever your reasoning is, I truly am grateful," I said as I leaned up and kissed her forehead. The movie was long forgotten and we spent the rest of the night curled up in each other's embrace.

JASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJASJAS

A sliver of sunlight streamed in from the curtains. We each had an arm under each other's head and the other wrapped around each other's waist and our legs were tangled together. I looked down at Bella, who was still sound asleep. I was not looking forward to today and dreaded the time we had to say goodbye to each other. I quietly disentangled myself from her and noticed that my boxers were still laying in a heap on the ground, along with my jeans. I looked back at Bella and saw that she had gotten rid of her jeans and shirt and was wearing my shirt from last night. Seeing her in my clothes stirred something within me and I knew I had to get out of there before I did something I knew I would regret later. I covered her back up before I grabbed the remaining clothes I had in the drawers and slipped into the bathroom to get showered and dressed for the day. As I showered, I had a mental pep talk and convinced myself that I had to be strong for Bella's sake and my own sanity. I quickly finished my shower and changed into my clothes.

When I walked back into the room, Bella was sitting up against the headboard with the blankets covering her from the waist down. "Hey," she said with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Hi," I said as I slipped under the blankets next to her. "How are you this morning?"

"Ugh, I'm not ready. All of this seems so surreal and I'm just afraid that when we get back to Washington later, things won't be as easy as they are now. It's hard to believe we've only known each other for seven days. Sometimes, I feel like I've known you my whole life and I don't want that to change."

"Bella, nothing is going to change just because we're in a different state. We have gone through a lot together this past week and we have been there for each other, as I hope we will continue to be. I am still going to love you, no matter where in the world you are, although I'd prefer it if you were by my side. And, I hope that you'll still love me when we see each other in three days," I told her.

"I'll always love you, Edward. I just hope that these next seventy-two hours go by quickly."

"Me too, Love, me too. Now, if you plan on leaving today, you better get ready. We are supposed to be meeting everyone in the Metropolis Theater at 6:30." I pulled myself away from her so she could get ready.

As Bella showered, I got the rest of our things together and packed them away into our duffle bags, all except the necklace. I was admiring it when I heard the water shut off, so I quickly hid it, and the note that I had written. When Bella stepped out of the bathroom, she walked up to me and wrapped her arms around my back. "I love you," she said before she stood on her tip toes to kiss me. I checked the room over to make sure we didn't miss anything before we walked out of our room, hand in hand.

As usual, we were the last to meet up with our group. Alice was able to save the same booth that we always seemed to end up at whenever we were in there. Once she caught sight of Bella, she threw herself out of her seat and into Bella's arms, nearly knocking her over. They burst into tears as Rosalie joined in on their group hug, followed by Esme and Renée. Charlie came up to me while the girls were embracing. "Edward, I just want to thank you for what you've done for Bella. If it weren't for you, I don't know what we would have done when Bella wouldn't let any of us near her. You saved her and our family, whether you realize it or not. I know that I was hard on you in the beginning, but can you really blame me? Bella's my little girl and nobody is ever going to be good enough for her, not even you. But, you come pretty damn close." I laughed at that. "Thank you again, Edward. I owe you." Charlie's voice cracked with his last words and a single tear escaped before he quickly wiped it away.

"It was my pleasure, Chief Swan. I love your daughter and would do anything for her."

"It's Charlie, Edward. And, I know you will. You better take care of my baby girl," he threatened.

"I will, Charlie." He pulled me into a hug and thanked me again before returning to Renée's side.

"So, Romeo, trying to suck up to the parentals, are we?" Bella asked as I sat next to her.

"Actually, no. He wanted to thank me." She looked at me, urging me to go on. "For being there for you when you needed me." I looked down into her eyes. "I'll always be there for you, no matter what."

"I know. I love you," she said before she leaned in to give me a chaste kiss. The only thing we could do was sit and wait for our color to be called for debarkation. Bella had leaned into my side to wait out the time. Nobody talked and nobody seemed happy about us leaving. Esme was sitting next to Bella and had a hand on her knee as Carlisle held her close to him. She had tears running hot trails down her cheeks, as did Renée, Alice, and even Rosalie. Bella started to tear up, so I gently kissed the top of her head to ease some of her nerves. Carlisle, Charlie, Jasper, Emmett, and I were each holding our loved ones in our arms, in an attempt to comfort them. It was safe to assume that neither one of us wanted to say goodbye. That held true, especially for me and Bella. At seven, the first color group was called for debarkation. They announced that every half hour, they would call a color to begin the debarkation of the ship. At eight o'clock, our color, red, was finally called. Bella pulled herself away from my side and held out her hands for me to take. She pulled me up and immediately wrapped her arms around me.

I pulled myself from her embrace and grabbed both of our bags. We left the theater and found the end of the line. The reality that Bella and I had only half an hour, max, together left began to dawn on me. I had Bella's back against my chest as the line slowly inched forward, but no matter how tight my arms were wrapped around her, it wasn't tight enough. I wanted her closer to me, even if it was impossible. We wound through the hallways of Deck 4 and, before I was ready, I saw the ramp that would mark the ending of this chapter in my life. I began kissing Bella anywhere I could reach because I wouldn't be able to kiss her for three days. I tried reminding myself of what Jasper had told me, but it wasn't helping.

Bella and I stepped up to the booths to slide our boarding passes into the slots after I reluctantly let go of her. We were the last ones in our group, so we followed the rest of them to baggage claim. Charlie and Renée had already found all of their bags, as well as Bella's. Emmett was pulling the last of ours from the bottom of the pile. Nobody had said anything yet, but I had a feeling that once we were by the buses that would take me to the airport and Bella to the hotel, we wouldn't be able to get in enough.

We stepped outside into the muggy air of Florida and the buses stood ominously before us. Bella removed her hand from mine and hugged my parents. As I predicted, my mother couldn't stop telling Bella how much she appreciated her for "bringing the life back into my eyes." Carlisle simply thanked her and told her that she was always welcome in our home. Alice and Rosalie spun Bella around and engulfed her in their embrace. Alice told Bella that she hoped they would get to play Bella Barbie again. I laughed when Rosalie told Bella that she would kick any guy's ass if she ever wanted to. Bella choked out a laugh through her tears. Before Alice and Rose could get carried away with their goodbye, Jasper stepped in and pulled Bella into a hug. She kissed his cheek and told him thank you for helping with Will just as Emmett grabbed her up into one of his infamous bone-crushing hugs. I was shocked to see a tear slide down Emmett's face before he quickly wiped it away. My brother spun Bella around a few times until she was laughing and begging him to put her down. "That's what I wanted to hear," he said, referring to her laugh.

Renée came up and took me into her arms. "Thank you, Edward. Bella has a light in her eyes that has been absent for a long time now. You did that for her, and I honestly don't know how to thank you."

"I don't deserve your daughter, but I'm glad she is happier," I said, kissing her cheek. Charlie had said all he needed to earlier, so we parted with just a simple hand shake and a quick hug.

As soon as Charlie released me, Bella flung herself into my arms, crying. I stumbled back into a pillar and held her close. "I love you so much," she sobbed, "I don't want to leave you, yet."

My own tears came, but I couldn't care less. "I know, Love. Three days isn't long at all," I said, trying to convince myself, more than her. I held Bella's head to my shoulder as I cried into hers. "I am not going to enjoy one minute of knowing that you are across the country, but I will be counting down the minutes until we see each other again. I love you more than life, itself. Never forget that. And I will always be there for you, no matter where we are." Our shirts were being drenched by our tears and everything around us had faded into the background. I don't know how long we were caught up in our own little world, but Carlisle reminded me that we had a flight to catch. "Take care of yourself, Love. I love you."

I set her back down on her feet and captured her lips with mine before I was, literally, dragged away. I never took my eyes off of her as I climbed the stairs to the bus and sat in the first available seat. "I love you," she mouthed to me through the window. I could only manage a small smile in return.

Jasper and Alice were sitting in the seats behind me. "It's going to be fine, Edward. You will see each other soon. Be strong for her," Alice whispered to me as she gently rubbed my shoulder. I roughly ran my hands over my face and was successful in stopping the flow of my tears. "I love you more," I mouthed back with a smile as the bus began its journey to the airport.

**BPOV**

_He's gone._

I was sitting on the edge of the bed in the hotel room, as I had been for the past hour. I couldn't remember getting into a car with Charlie and Renée or arriving at the hotel, but I knew I had done nothing but sit for the last hour. The last thing I remembered was Edward mouthing, "I love you more," through the bus window. I tried to smile back, but I knew it didn't look right.

Deciding, that I should unpack my bags for the rest of my vacation, I finally stood up and walked to my duffle bag. I threw it onto the bed and unzipped it. Something fell out of it and landed under the bed. _Just great_, I thought sarcastically to myself. I couldn't see under the bed, so I groped around blindly for the offending object. My fingers grazed something, so I grabbed it and pulled it out. I froze.

In my hand was a little blue box with a slip of paper underneath a white ribbon tied around the box. I slowly undid the ribbon and took the piece of paper in my hand.

_Take care of my heart; I've left it with you._

_All my love, Edward_

The tears began again as I reread the words in his elegant script. I couldn't even bring myself to lift the lid from the small box. My breathing started to become erratic as I fought to bring in a breath, the tears never ceasing. I stood in the same place with the note in one hand and the box in the other for a while before I was finally able to somewhat control my emotions. I finally lifted the lid and pulled out the little blue pouch. I undid the drawstrings and dumped its contents into my hand and closed my fist. It took me a few minutes before I was able to uncurl my fingers and inspect what had landed in my palm. Edward had gotten me a silver chain with a heart dangling in the middle.

I broke down, then, and collapsed to the floor, the sobs taking over my body.

_I love you._

**A/N: So, what do you think? The songs for this chapter are "Goodbye My Lover" by James Blunt and "Let Me Sign" by Robert Pattinson! *swoon* Most people want a sequel, but unless somebody suggests a gnarly plot twist, there won't be a sequel. We'll extend this story out a little, but as of right now, no sequel. We love getting reviews, so just take a few minutes and give us one please!! Once again, the link for the necklace is on our profiles. This story was nominated over at The Indie Twific Awards!! We were nominated for Best Collaboration Work in Progress, so if you could go over and vote for us, that'd be awesome! Thank you so much to whoever nominated us! We'd love to know who you are so we can give you a proper thank you! The link to the awards will be on our profiles! **


	25. No Air

Ch. 24: No Air

**A/N: Hey…..yikes. We apologize for the extremely long delay in the update. Five months went by a lot faster than we thought. School is a bitch. But now it is Winter break and we hope to finish this story soon. We will never have that long of time between updates. Thanks for the story/author alerts, favorite story/author, and reviews. A mando thanks to hgbkwrm for being there and being the best biffle that anyone could ever have! She's g-narly!!!! We have promoted hgbkwrm to being a member of our team. That leaves the position of Number One Fan open. Any takers?? Let us know and we will mention you as the new Number One Fan in the next chapter. Also, a big thanks to lauren loves spunky for being amazing and helping hopelessromantic09 get her butt in gear and get this chapter out. **

**EPOV**

_I need to go back._

That was all I kept thinking as we were on the plane to Washington. Leaving Bella was, by far, the hardest thing I have had or probably will ever do. The look on her face as the bus pulled away was excruciating to witness. I could tell that she was trying to be happy and mask the hurt we were both feeling, but it was still present.

I had been silent during the entire bus ride to the airport and still had not said a word to anyone. I tried to drown out my thoughts with my iPod. Song after song played, each of them reminding of Bella more and more. It took everything in me not to let my tears flow freely. I clenched my jaw to hold in the tears. Every now and then, I would catch Rosalie, who was sitting in the row in front of me with Emmett, "look around" but I didn't miss that each time, her gaze lingered on me longer than any of her subjects.

I averted my gaze but I was aware of Rosalie leaving her seat and sitting in the empty seat next to me; the seat that Bella was supposed to fill. "Snap out of it Edward," Rosalie said barely above a whisper, "The separation will be good for you two, I promise."

"How can you say that when it feels like my heart has been ripped from my chest and stomped on?" I had tried to convince myself that I did need to accept that the brief separation would be beneficial to my relationship with Bella, but I never fully accepted it. "I need her here with me, Rose. I thought I could go three days without her, but I can't. I have to go back. I have to find her. I need her here with me." My last sentence sounded pitiful beyond belief as the tears I had so desperately tried to contain began their relentless journey down my face. _Just great._

Rose wrapped her arms around me as I gave into my emotions and let the tears and quiet sobs consume me. "Edward, I know it hurts to be away from her, believe me, but you both need this. On the ship, you two spent pretty much every waking, and non-waking for that matter, moment together, but back here in the real world, that's not going to be possible. You'll both have college to worry about and getting jobs. Not to mention the fact that she doesn't live in the same city as us." I cringed at that because I knew she was making valid points. "Reality won't allow you to spend every moment together, but remember that reality is sweeter. The rewards that you will reap because of this separation will be well worth the pain that you are feeling now, I promise. Just give it a chance. If you go back to Florida and try to find her, I don't know if you will ever be able to be away from each other and that would not be good at all. You need this, Edward. Do it for Bella. Do it for the strength of your relationship. But most importantly, do this for you, Edward," she said as she rubbed soothing circles on my back.

My sobs had ceased and the last few tears were making their way down my face as I processed everything Rosalie had said. I knew that in the long run, being away from Bella for three days would be a good start for when we were all back in Washington and we couldn't spend every moment of the day together, but I didn't know if the pain I was feeling right now would be worth it. I sat for a few more moments thinking everything through before I spoke. "You're right," I said as I lifted my head and ran the back of my hands over my eyes, wiping the tear tracks away. "We need this. It's going to hurt like hell when we're apart, but it can only help us. And when we do see each other, it'll be that much more special." As I said those words, I felt myself beginning to accept that this was what was best for us.

"Exactly," Rose said as I saw a faint hint of a smile threatening to break through. "I'm proud of you."

"Thanks, Rose," I said as I hugged her again.

"There is absolutely no need for you to thank me." With that, she got up and returned to her seat next to Emmett. _ I can do this, _I thought. Three days wasn't really that much time. And this would be good for us; it would make us stronger. That's what I kept telling myself the rest of the plane ride home.

Eventually we made it back home, although I don't really remember anything after talking to Rose on the plane. As soon as I got in the house I got my bags, went straight to my room, and shut the door. I knew I needed to accept that the distance was good for Bella and I but I still missed her. After just lying on my bed for what seemed like hours, I started putting my stuff away. As I was sorting all my clothes out, I realized that I would be packing them away again soon for college. I knew that if I could survive these next three days without Bella I would be able to make it through college without her by my side every moment of everyday.

As I was sorting the last few articles of clothing there was a knock on my door, "Edward? Can I come in?" With a sigh, I said, "Sure." Alice came in, taking a seat on the bed and began playing with the comforter before she spoke, "I miss her, too you know."

I walked over to the bed and sat down next to her, staring blankly ahead of me, "I think we all do, but this will be good." She looked at me and nodded.

"Yes it will be, especially for you two. " My heart was saying that this wasn't a good thing but my mind was saying it was. At this point, I had to believe my mind. I just nodded and prayed that I wouldn't start crying again. "So we're going out to dinner once everyone puts their things away, do you want to come?"

I shook my head, "No, not really. I think I'm just going to stay here." I looked at her and she simply nodded as if she knew I needed time to myself.

"Okay. We shouldn't be gone too long."

"That's fine," I said as she walked out. I heard the front door close shortly after Alice left my room and decided to put on some music. I put my iPod on the dock and let it play. I always felt as if the music knew how I feel and every song that played was perfect for my situation.

I just laid on my bed listening to the music and was almost asleep when I heard a knock on the door. Thinking it was going to be Alice or Rose forgetting their purse or something, I dragged myself from my bed to the door and opened it. _Definitely not who I was expecting or wanted to see._ We just stared at each other for a few moments before she finally spoke first.

"Hey, Edward."

I was at a loss for words at first because she shouldn't have been standing there on my doorstep. I didn't know what to do or say, so I just stood there staring at her. "What are you doing here?" I finally asked.

She looked like she had been crying and her voice was shaky. "I miss you, so much. I need you and I miss you. I miss what we had and us, I want it all back. I love you, Edward. I am so sorry for what I did."

"Tanya. There is no more 'us' and there hasn't been for a while, especially not when you cheated on me so often. We aren't together anymore and we will never be together again. Please just go home." I started to shut the door but she stopped it with her hand.

"Edward, please. Just give me a few minutes so I can explain everything that happened. Please."

I looked at her and shook my head, "No. What's done is done and I don't need an explanation anymore. I'm done with the lies and the secrecy. I'm done with everything that has to do with you."

She stared at me and the expression in her eyes looked as if I just crushed every dream she has ever had. "Well can I at least give you a hug goodbye?" I figured one hug wouldn't hurt and I hoped it would satisfy her and get her to leave sooner, so I nodded my head. She stepped into the foyer and wrapped her arms around my neck and clung to me like this was the last time she would ever see me. I was so numb from everything that had happened with Bella and Tanya definitely was not the one I wanted to be hugging at this moment, so I just stood there, unresponsive to her touch.

And then she kissed me. She tried slipping her tongue in my mouth, but I kept my lips firmly shut. That woke me up from the stupor I had previously been stuck in. I tried pushing her away, but she wouldn't release her death grip on my neck and her mouth would not stop its assault on my lips. "Tanya, stop," I said in a forceful voice. She didn't do as I said, so I tried to unlock her arms from around my neck but she wouldn't let go and wouldn't stop kissing me. At this point, I couldn't get Bella's face out of my mind and I instantly felt horrible. It was like Bella was standing right there, witnessing all that was happening. It was too much. I wanted to cry right then and there and apologize to Bella as soon as I could.

Tanya had a smirk on her face and the expression of pain that had been in her eyes before was now replaced with a look of deviousness. "Oh, come on Edward. We both know you want this." Her hand began traveling down to the button of my jeans. "Don't try to fight it and just enjoy it."

I grabbed her hand and shook my head, "No. I don't want this and I don't want you! I never will."

"Tanya!"

I looked over Tanya's shoulder at the door. There Alice stood with her hands on her hips and the most disgusted look I had ever seen on her face. "Tanya! You better get the hell off of my brother and get the fuck out of this house! He doesn't need your fucking games anymore! He's done with all your bullshit!"

She looked at me with a smug grin and said, "Fine. I knew you couldn't handle me, Edward. I tried to give you one last chance but you just lost out on the best thing that has ever happened to you."

"You're right, Tanya," I shivered as her name was spat from my mouth, "I couldn't handle you or your little games. But, for your information, the best thing that has ever happened to me happened while I was away. Away from you, away from our relationship, away from everything you ever did to me. My life and everything in it was so better when I wasn't around all of this. And you don't even come close to her. She is a far better person than you ever will be." She turned on her heel and stormed out of the house, but not before flipping Alice and me off. _Very classy._

I walked backwards to the wall, sunk down, and buried my face in my hands. Once again, I allowed my tears to flow freely, not caring anymore. This was all too much. I never expected to see Tanya again. And I sure as hell didn't expect her to kiss me. All I wanted was to have Bella near me, to feel her warm body pressed to mine and have her lips wipe away the remnants of Tanya. _Three days, _I reminded myself.

Alice came over, sat down next to me, and started rubbing my shoulders. "Edward, please don't cry. She's not worth it. You can't give her the satisfaction. Everything will be okay. I promise."

"I just feel so bad, Alice. I feel as if I let Bella down. I should've gotten rid of Tanya as soon as I saw her standing in the doorway. I shouldn't have even answered the fucking door. God, I'm an idiot!" I kept seeing Bella's face as I got on the bus. Her face showed the heartbreak she was feeling and if she had been there to see what had just transpired, I don't know what I would've done. It was killing me as reality slowly sunk in, so I could only imagine what it would've done to Bella. It would've broken her.

"Tanya is a manipulator. She made you feel sorry for her and then she used that against you. She took advantage of your caring nature. Don't beat yourself up over it too much, Edward. You're leaving for college soon. Now you have Bella and bigger and better things are sure to come your way. Trust me."

By this point, the tears had stopped and the tear tracks and my red rimmed eyes were the only traces of my minor breakdown. I looked over at Alice and knew she was right. Bigger and better things were coming my way and soon I'd be away from Tanya and everything else that has plagued me here for good and I'd be at college. And I would be more than happy with Bella. Despite the distance, we'd be happy.

The next few days passed by excruciatingly slow. My days were filled with packing my things away from my room for college and getting used to not having Bella by me all the time. Even though Bella wasn't here physically, she was still present. She and I had been in constant contact since I had gotten home. We texted from the moment we woke up until the moment we could no longer keep our eyes open.

In the middle of packing away my desk or shelves, I would end up just laying on the floor, not thinking about anything in particular. It never failed that, slowly but surely, my mind would drift to Bella and how nice it would be to have her with me again. I would waste a majority of my time surrounded by boxes, just laying on the floor for hours on end, but always happy because I would be talking to Bella. It was getting easier to be without her but I still preferred her to be next to me. I knew that if I could survive this small amount of time apart, then she would be able too as well. I stayed strong for us.

**BPOV**

I cried and cried and cried. I didn't think my eyes could produce that many tears, but I was continually proven wrong. After finding the necklace, I crawled onto the bed and just lay there grasping onto the necklace as if it was the only thing that could save me from the terrible pain I was feeling. An hour of just holding it and crying had passed before I finally released my grip on it and really looked at the necklace. It was a sterling silver chain with a sterling silver heart dangling in the center. The heart was inscribed with _"Please Return To Tiffany & Co. New York 925." _ I sat up in bed and placed my only physical connection to Edward around my neck. I knew that as soon as I put it on, it would never come off, no matter what. Eventually, I fell asleep and didn't even bother to unpack the rest of my bags. This wasn't home and, for that reason, I didn't feel the need to make it appear that way, even if it was for a short amount of time. I didn't think that I would even consider my own house home anymore. Edward was my home and wherever he was, I would be the most comfortable.

The vacation continued and, even though it hurt, I put on the smile I knew would please my parents and tried to enjoy the rest of our time in Florida. I had to remember that Charlie and Renée were here to have fun and I wasn't going to let my somber mood affect the remainder of their vacation. In my mind though, all I kept thinking was _I hate this. I don't want to be here. _I just wanted to be with Edward.

I didn't want to be in Florida without Edward. The idea of being away from him was slowly killing me. Every time I let that thought invade my mind, I would start to tear up and sometimes, it was just unbearable. We were only going to be separated for three days and surely that wasn't any significant amount of time. It would fly by and soon enough I would be back in Washington. At least, that's what I kept telling myself. We had become dependant on each other's presence. I craved being near him.

It was hard, so unbelievably hard, to be without him. I pretended to care what year a certain house was built and I acted like I had an actual interest in what celebrity lived in what house and why that house was theirs during the Star Island Boat Tour. I didn't though. I hated it. I often found myself fiddling with the heart pendant without even remembering I had moved my hand to fiddle with my new piece of jewelry. The only thing that really kept me going for the next few days was the fact that Edward and I would talk constantly. We texted all day and, at times, it seemed as though he was actually there with me. Then I would look on either side of me and be disappointed when he wasn't physically there.

Renée seemed to be having the time of her life in Florida. I don't think she noticed how much it was hurting me to be here. It was weird because, out of the two of them, Renée had always been the one who was more aware of how I was feeling, even without me telling her. This time though, Charlie seemed to take notice of my emotions and saw how I was affected by all of this. After spending the morning touring Star Island and getting a tour of downtown Miami, I went straight to bed and lay down. I shut my eyes and could practically feel the crease between my eyes form a permanent valley on my forehead. If I had my way, I would just sleep until I could be with him again. I willed unconsciousness to consume me and was almost asleep when I felt one side of the bed sink down. I thought it was Renée trying to get me to go do some other tourist activity, so, without looking, I said, "I don't want to do anything else, Mom. I just want to sleep. Take dad with you if you want to go see more of the city."

"Well honestly, I don't want to do anything more either. Your mother tends to wear me out. There are too many things she wants to do and I just want to relax and watch some television or something."

I opened my eyes and saw Charlie staring down at me with a soft smile on his face. "How you doing Bells?"

I had every intention of lying to him and saying I was doing fine, that even though it hurt I was doing okay. As soon as I opened my mouth, all that came out was a whimper. "I miss him so much, Daddy."

He didn't make any attempt to leave, which shocked me because he normally didn't handle emotions very well, let alone whimpering and sobbing. He rubbed my back in a soothing manner until my sobs quieted down and there were just silent tears running down my face. "You know what I think about all of this?" He asked as he began rubbing my scalp like he used to do when I was yonger.

I shook my head, "No, Dad. I don't know what you think about all this."

"I think that that boy loves you, very much and that you return those feelings tenfold. And I know it kills you to be away from him right now, but you'll be back with him soon, Bells. And the distance will only make you two stronger. I promise."

"Three days. We have to be apart for three days. We haven't been separated for more than a few hours before this." As I said these words, reality began sinking in and I buried my face in my elbow and began to cry again. I thought that the reason why I was having such a hard time with the separation was because Edward was my constant. He was there when I needed him most and I came to depend on that.

I had forgotten that Charlie was there until I heard him speak again, "No Bella. It's only one more day that you have to be away from him."

This had me thoroughly confused. I looked up at Charlie to ask for clarification, but as soon as he saw my face he began explaining. "We're going home early. We'll be back in Washington tomorrow night and you'll be able to see Edward again."

I was still somewhat confused about this new piece of information because we were supposed to be here for another day, not including the full day of travelling we had ahead of us. The look on my face must not have changed because Charlie had to explain again. "We're going home, Bella."

"But we aren't supposed to. Not for another day."

"That was what we had planned on, yes. But that was the plan before everything happened. Bells, we can all see it. We know you're trying to put on a brave face and you're going to sit here and insist that you're feeling okay when we really know that you're not." I just stared at him. I thought I had been fooling them. I knew Charlie could see something was wrong, but I thought he was just recognizing the fact that I was sad.

"Dad, we can't just leave and…."

"This is not up for discussion, Bella. Your mother and I agree that we have seen the Caribbean and we have seen Florida. There's not much else to do. We want you to be happy." He looked at me and waited for me to accept the change in plans. It felt as if I was in a dream.

"We're really leaving early?" I clarified.

"Yes we are. You need to start packing soon."

I sat up and looked at him just in case he was going to say 'Just kidding!', but that never came, so I nodded. "Okay, I'll start packing now."

"Good." He got up from the bed and started walking towards the door. "Oh, and Bells?"

"Yeah, Dad?" This was it. This was when he was going to tell me this was all a joke and, with my luck, we'd be spending an extra week here 'just because," as I had heard so many times before.

He walked back towards me. "Don't let him go."

This was not what I had expected to come from his mouth. I was at a loss for words. "What?"

"Edward. Don't let him go. He's a good kid." The look of confusion must have been clear as day on my face again because he sighed like I was pulling the truth out of him.

"I know that, in the beginning, I said that I didn't like him and I know I was mean to him but can you honestly blame me? You're my little girl, no matter how old you actually are, and no one is ever going to be good enough for you. But that boy comes pretty damn close to being good enough."

This started a fresh round of tears for me. _Could I be done with the tears now, please?_ I wasn't sobbing and these weren't sad tears. They were happy tears. I was elated to know that Charlie actually liked and approved of Edward. It seemed as though he accepted the fact that we loved each other and Edward wasn't going anywhere any time soon. I scrambled off the bed and rushed into my dad's arms. "Thank you, Dad."

"Anytime Bells. Now get packing. We've got a plane to catch in the morning," he said with a smile.

I immediately began packing what little items I had unpacked. I was so excited that I would be able to see Edward sooner than anticipated. I would be in his arms again in less than twenty-four hours and that thought alone put some bounce in my step. There was finally going to be a light at the end of this dark, seemingly endless, tunnel that had become the past couple days of my life.

**EPOV**

Longest forty-eight hours of my life. It felt as if the days were dragging on slower and slower just to taunt and annoy me. I would see Bella again tomorrow afternoon. That was the bright side of the situation, just twenty-four more hours. I didn't care how late it was when she got back, I would be there to see her as soon as she stepped off that plane. I wanted to be the first one to see her. The thought of seeing her so soon, made hope that this really was for the best bubble up inside me. I knew that if we could make it through three days without each other so soon after everything happened, we could make it through college and anything else that life decided to throw our way.

I had been wandering through the house and had ended up at my piano. It always seemed to calm me down and help my thoughts become clearer and less chaotic. I sat at the bench and was just messing around, hitting notes at random. Then, without me really realizing what was happening, the seemingly random notes transformed into the song I had written for Bella on the ship, a small smile tugging at my lips. I missed her and I think, subconsciously, I started playing it because I knew I would be seeing her soon. I couldn't wait. My eyes stayed shut as I played the entire composition and held that last note just a little longer than was necessary. I knew someone was standing in the doorway watching me play the last part of the song. Esme always enjoyed listening to me play and I knew she liked when I played my original pieces. I opened my eyes and slowly spun around on the bench to face the door, planning to ask if she wanted to hear her song. Before my eyes shifted to the door, one word escaped from the lips of my lone audience member.

"Beautiful."

**A/N: The song used for this chapter was "No Air" by Jordin Sparks & Chris Brown or the version from "Glee," take your pick. And we have officially decided not to do a sequel. We don't want to make it cliché and feel a sequel would do no good for this story. It wouldn't be what we want. So, we love you all very much and Christmas is coming up. All we want for Christmas are reviews. :) So please grant our wish and take two seconds to drop us a line. **


	26. If I Ain't Got You

Ch. 25: If I Ain't Got You

**A/N: Hey guys. Well, this was a long wait, we know, but it wasn't as long as the last update! So there's something to be happy about. Real life got in the way like no other mother. But we always make time for our baby **** We'd like to thank you all for the story/author alerts, favorite story/ author, and the reviews. They really mean a lot to us. An absolutely humongous thank you goes out to hgbkwrm for being there for us and helping us with all this. Seriously, without you, we wouldn't have come this far. And last chapter we promoted hgbkwrm to being a part of our team and we were looking for a new number one fan, and our brand new numero uno fan is…..xorachel63xo!!! Congrats!! **

**EPOV**

I whipped my head around at the sound of the voice, not expecting to see her standing in the doorway. "What are you doing here?" I asked, clearly stunned.

"Nice to see you, too, Edward. Way to greet your sister," Rose said as she walked into the room and took a seat next to me on the piano bench.

"Sorry, I thought you were Esme. I just wasn't expecting it to be you standing there." I said with a shrug of my shoulders. If I was being honest, the one person I wanted it to be was still in Florida.

"It's cool." Rosalie took a moment to look at me from head to toe. "You look like hell, Edward." I scoffed at the comment, but should've expected it from her. "I know that was harsh and I'm sorry, but you need to take care of yourself. What would Bella say if she saw you looking like this?" she asked me.

I took a moment to think it over. Once again, Rosalie was right. "Must you always prove me wrong?" I asked, granting her a small smile, which she returned. "I know Bella wouldn't be too happy if she saw me moping around like I have been. I know that I shouldn't, but I just can't shake this damn feeling."

"I know it's hard, but like I've said before, you have to do it. And quite frankly, your Mopey Mable act is getting a little old." Leave it to Rosalie to tell you how it is. "She'll be home soon, Edward. You've lasted this long and she's going to be home sooner than you know it. Try not to dwell on it and keep living." I nodded at everything she said, knowing I had to do it. I needed to do it for myself and for Bella. "How have you been sleeping?" she asked after a few moments of silence between us.

"Not very well," I admitted. "It's not the same without her." Saying it out loud made it seem kind of ridiculous, but I knew it was true.

"Again, I know it's not, but you did it before you met her and you need to get used to the fact that she's not always going to be able to sleep in the same bed with you. Go take a nap; you could use it."

"Yes, Mom," I teased, "Have I mentioned how annoying you being right all the time is?"

"Hey, it's not my fault I'm perfect," she said, complete with a hair toss and an award winning smile.

I laughed, "You're definitely one of a kind, Rose." I sighed before stretching my arms above my head. "I think I will go take that nap. I'm exhausted," I said as I finally gave in to my tiredness.

"Good boy," Rosalie said with a teasing smile. "Do you want someone to wake you up for dinner?"

"That might be best. I don't think Esme would want me missing dinner unless I was laying on my deathbed." I thought that over for a second before I spoke, "Actually, scratch that, she'd probably make sure I was still eating," I said as I smiled at the thought of my mom's strong maternal instincts.

Rosalie laughed, "That is more than true. God, I love that woman." I couldn't help but nod in agreement.

"Alright, I'm off to take that nap," I said as I stood from the bench and headed for the door. I stopped before I got to the door and turned around to face Rosalie again, "Thanks, Rose, I owe you."

"You got that right!" We both laughed. "No, but seriously, you're welcome," she said, "Now go!"

"Always so pushy," I rushed out, dodging a slap that I knew was coming. I ran up the stairs, and flopped onto my bed. I turned on my stomach and shut my eyes hoping that maybe I could get at least a little bit of rest. I was almost completely asleep when I felt a weight above me and felt a breath in my ear. "Miss me?"

My eyes shot open and I flipped over so quick I was surprised that I didn't knock her arms out from under her. I saw those beautiful, chocolate eyes staring down at me and I felt like I had found my home. I had to blink a couple of times to make sure I wasn't making up what I was seeing because of the lack of sleep. I heard that musical laughter I loved so much and I knew I wasn't just making it up, she was actually here.

"I'm taking the silence as you either didn't miss me at all or you missed me tremendously and am shocked to see me. Personally, I like to think it's the latter."

"The latter. Definitely the latter." I kissed those soft lips that I had missed so much and I felt like the storm within me had finally calmed down when her lips touched mine.

She pulled away and smiled down at me, "Good."

I smiled back and was about to start kissing her again when a thought occurred to me, "What are you doing here? You aren't supposed to be back till tomorrow."

"That was the plan but it changed at the last minute thanks to Renée and Charlie." I was thoroughly confused by this and my face must have said it all because she took a deep breath and lay down next to me. I immediately put my arm around her and began rubbing her arm.

"After you left I found the necklace and we continued on with the rest of the vacation as planned and I thought I was doing a good job of hiding how much I didn't want to be there but Charlie picked up on it."

I looked over at her and she was, unknowingly, playing with the heart pendant on her necklace. I grabbed that hand and rubbed circles on it while she continued on with her explanation.

"So last night I was lying on the bed and I just kept crying and the tears wouldn't stop no matter how hard I tried to make them." Her voice had gotten a little shaky at this point and one tear rolled down her cheek and I wiped it away with my thumb and gave her a reassuring smile, "Go on."

"Charlie came in and said that the distance would make us stronger and that we would be together again soon and all that. Then I went on about being apart for three days and then he said that we were going home early. And now, here I am." I looked down at her and smiled.

"I'm glad you're here now," I looked at her and she smiled at me, "but I'm also sad that you were crying so much and didn't enjoy the rest of your vacation."

She wrapped her arm around my torso and gently squeezed, "My vacation ended when you left. The past couple of days have been my own personal hell. I didn't enjoy any of it because you weren't there. I feel like I'm home now."

I kissed her forehead and brought her closer to my body, "I know how you feel. I haven't felt this at ease since we were last together. I missed you."

"I missed you too. More than you know."

**BPOV**

I had finished my packing within minutes thanks to my frenzied pace fueled by my desire to be with Edward again. As I was packing, though, a thought occurred to me. I had just finished zipping up my suitcase, sat on the bed, and turned to Charlie, who was putting the last articles of clothing into his, and asked, "Dad?"

"Yeah, Bells?"

"Edward lives four hours away." Charlie looked at me as if encouraging me to continue, so I did, "So am I just going to drive back to Seattle after we get home and come back home?"

"We've got it all taken care of, Bells."

I looked at him in shock, "What do you mean?"

"Your mother already called Carlisle and Esme. They said that they would be more than willing to pick you up from Sea-Tac airport while your mother and I continue on home to Forks. You'll be spending a few days with the Cullens. Esme said she misses having you around," he said with a small chuckle.

"Really?" I asked, excitement clear in my voice.

"Yep. I'm sure Edward misses you too. That boy is head over heels for you, Bella."

I smiled at Charlie's recognition of Edward's love for me and my love for him. "I know he is." At that moment, Renée walked in the door. "Hey Mom," I greeted with enthusiasm that I had been lacking.

"Hey Sweetie, you almost ready to head out? We've got to head to the airport in about ten minutes."

"Yep, I'm all packed. And thank you, Mom."

"For what?" She asked, as she checked the hotel room one last time for anything we may have left.

"For letting us go home early. It really means a lot and I'm so excited to see Edward again." I got up from my spot on the bed and engulfed her and Charlie in a hug.

"Of course, Sweetie. Your father and I could tell how miserable you were. And the Cullens were more than willing to help us out. Apparently Edward has been a little blue lately, too. They said they'd love to have you stay with them for a few days. Okay you two, we need to get a move on."

I grabbed my bag and followed Charlie and Renée out the hotel door and to the elevator. Knowing that I would see Edward soon made me antsy and I began shifting my weight from foot to foot in the elevator. Charlie must've noticed because he chuckled, "A little anxious, are we?"

Of course, me being me, I blushed and ceased my movements, "Maybe just a little."

He laughed again, "Calm down Bells, we still have six hours of flying before we get to Washington."

"I know, but that doesn't make me any less excited to see Edward."

"Touché," my mom said, causing my dad to scoff. But I didn't miss the small smile he gave as he looked the curb. Charlie took charge of loading our bags into the trunk and climbed into the car behind Renée and me.

We arrived at the airport and walked to the check in desk, but unfortunately, the airport was extremely crowded and the line was a mile long. Standing in line was excruciating, I felt like the line wasn't moving at all. Every time someone came over the intercom to announce something, I was freaking out that they would announce that our flight was delayed. I kept looking around and practically jumping in place. "Bella, you've got to chill out. We're almost to the counter and then we won't have to wait long." Renée said.

"I know, I know. Sorry." I noticed that I kept fiddling with my necklace and finally stopped when we reached the counter. Finally, we had our tickets and made our way through security. Fortunately, that line moved surprisingly fast and, before I knew it, we were at our terminal waiting for our zone to be called.

The six hour plane ride felt like the longest time I had to sit still in my entire life. The seatbelt sign couldn't come on fast enough and, as soon as it was on, I jumped out of my seat and went to the bathroom. I thought maybe walking around would make the time go by quicker, but that didn't work. I felt like every time I was up, I was up for hours but it was really only minutes. Throughout the entire flight, I would constantly play with my necklace and think about Edward. I couldn't wait to be with him again, I would finally feel like I could be myself again. I wasn't just excited to see Edward, I was excited to see the entire Cullen Family. Esme and Carlisle were like my second parents and Rose, Emmett, Jasper, and Alice had become the siblings that I never had. It felt nice to have a large family since it had always been just me and my parents.

Finally, after what seemed like an entire day, the plane landed in Sea-Tac airport. We got off the plane relatively quick and made our way to the terminal. Charlie and Renée stopped as soon as we got off to the side. "Honey, one of the Cullens will be waiting outside to pick you up."

"Okay Mom. Do you know who exactly?" I was hoping that it would be Edward, but deep down, I knew it would be someone else.

"I'm not sure who's going to pick you up, but tell the Cullens hello for us and that we send our love," Renée said.

"I will." I gave her a hug as I told her this, then turned to Charlie.

"Have fun, Bells. Like your mother said, tell them we say hello and we send our love."

I was a little shocked to hear this coming from Charlie, but over the past few days, I think he knew that the Cullens would be in our lives forever. "Got it, Dad. I love you."

"Love you too, Bells." I gave them both one last hug and made my way to the main doors. I was still curious as to who was going to pick me up. I was kind of hoping for Alice, since she was like my sister and I missed that spiky haired pixie. Or maybe Jasper will be there. He makes me feel calm, which I probably needed right now, since I was still pretty anxious. I walked down the steps and, as soon as I looked up, she was right there waiting, impossible to miss. "Hey Bella, long time no see."

"Hi Rose. It's only been two days."

She came over and helped me get my luggage, "Yeah, I know, but with Edward's mood lately, it's felt way longer than that."

The thought of Edward hurting made me a little worried and my hand immediately went up to the necklace. "Really? Has it been that bad?"

"Not horrible, but everyone can see how different he is without you there. Thank God you're finally here," she said with a laugh.

I couldn't tell whether or not that was sarcasm, or if she was really glad I was here. "Um, thanks?"

She gave another chuckle and said, "Don't worry, that was genuine. We really are glad to have you back with us."

"Well in that case, my thanks were sincere." By this time, we were already at her car and on our way back the house. I wasn't really anxious anymore as much as I was excited. I was only a matter of minutes away from seeing Edward and I couldn't be happier.

I didn't notice Rose was laughing at me until I looked over at her. "What?"

"If you're this excited about seeing him, I can only imagine how excited he's going to be to see you. He's going to be shocked."

I stopped bouncing in my seat when I heard this, "Wait, so he doesn't know I'm coming?"

"Nope. He doesn't have the slightest clue, you're his surprise," she said with a devilish smile.

Learning this piece of information made me just that much more excited to get there. "Cool. Are we almost there?"

"Chill out woman. We're almost there, like 10 more minutes."

"Okay, sorry, I'm just really excited."

"It's okay. I get where you're coming from."

"Thanks." I looked out the window to see an amazing house with glass surrounding it and it seemed like all the lights were on and then looked to Rose.

She gave me a big smile and a chuckle, "Yes Bella, we're finally here."

She pulled around to the back of the house and I was a little confused and was about to ask what was going on until she pulled into a garage with four other cars in it. "Wow. There are a lot of cars."

She got out of the car and went to go get my bags out of the trunk, "Yeah, the Cullens like their cars."

I looked at all the cars and noticed they were all really nice cars. "Yeah, apparently so."

"Come on, this way." She led me into the house and Carlisle and Esme were right there waiting for us with open arms.

"Hi, Sweetie. How are you?" Esme asked me as soon as she saw me.

I went up and hugged her, "Hi, Esme. I'm doing better now, thanks. How are you?"

"So glad to have you here." She returned my hug gratefully.

"Thank you." I then turned to Carlisle, "Hello, Carlisle."

He reached out and gave me a warm embrace, "It's so good to see you, Bella. We've missed you being around."

"I've missed you guys too. And thank you so much for letting me stay here for the next couple days. It really means a lot to me."

"It's our pleasure. I think everybody will be excited to have you here for the next couple of days."

Rose took this opportunity to chime in, "Speaking of people being excited about Bella, I think she needs to go be someone's surprise."

Esme gave me a huge smile, "Oh yes. Rose will show you where you need to be. It's so good to have you here Bella."

"Thank you. It's so nice to see you two again." And with that, Rose grabbed my arm and took me up two flights of stairs to a door. I was starting to get excited knowing that he would be just beyond that door. One door separated me from the person I needed most in life.

Rose opened the door and I had the biggest grin on my face ever, "Okay, this is his room."

My smile faded when I saw that the room was empty. Rose noticed my face right away. "Don't freak out, he's here just not in here specifically. You're his surprise, remember?"

"I know, I just thought he would be here right now."

"You're a surprise and when we say surprise, we really mean surprise. Get in the closet." She started pushing me towards the closet and I didn't know what was going on.

"Rose! What…..why am I going in the closet?" I was trying to dig my heels in the ground until she told me what was going on, but I was no match for her.

"You're going to stay in here until he gets in here himself, then you're going to surprise him by coming out of the closet." I finally gave in and let her put me in the closet.

"Now, just stay here, be quiet and come out whenever you think it's the right time. He'll be up here soon. Have fun." With that, she closed the closet door, leaving it open just a crack.

"Hey, Rose," she opened the door, "Yes?"

"Thanks, for picking me up and for helping me with this." I gave her the most genuine smile I could muster up.

She gave me a big smile and said, "No problem. Now, get in there and be quiet until he gets in here."

The door was closed again and I heard the bedroom door shut too. Now it was just a matter of waiting and, hopefully, I wouldn't have to wait too long before I got to see him. I was in there for probably about five minutes before I heard the door open again. I peeped through the crack and saw him. I was about ready to just burst through the door and yell that I was there but, like Rose said, this was a real surprise and I wanted to keep it that way, so I waited.

I saw him lay down on the bed on his stomach and decided to wait just a couple moments longer before making my move. It took everything in me not to just jump on the bed with him and brush that piece of hair out of his eyes but I gently climbed on the bed right above him and whispered in his ear, "Miss me?"

After his initial shock, we spent a few moments just kissing and rememorizing everything about each other.

**EPOV**

I loved having Bella by my side again, the world felt right after two nights of feeling alone and lost. We just sat in silence looking at each other. I had never felt as calm as I did in that moment. I continued rubbing Bella's arm until she spoke.

"Edward, these past two days have been really, really hard for me without you by my side. I hated every second of it."

"I know. I hated it too. I was so lost without you, I felt like I was going crazy."

"I don't want to feel like that ever again. I know it's probably too late now, so I'll wait until I can, but I'm going to transfer to Dartmouth."

I had to cease my movement on her arm and sit up because I didn't think she was serious. I pulled her up with me and looked her in the eye. "Are you serious? You're really going to transfer to Dartmouth?"

She smiled and said, "Yeah, I would never wish that type of pain on my worst enemy. I know I won't be happy unless you're with me. And even though I have to be on my own for a semester, I'd do it because that'd be easier than four years on my own."

I was elated to hear this news. I pulled her into my arms again and kissed her passionately. "Bella, that's the best news I have heard in a long time. I can't wait to have you there with me."

"I just, I love you a lot and I want you with me always."

"I love you so much Baby."

I grabbed her and pulled her down beside me and we spent the rest of the night in each other's arm. As we were laying there, I felt Bella's breathing get heavier and soon she was fast asleep. I looked down at her and knew that this was where we were supposed to be, together in each other's arms. The last thing I thought of before I fell asleep was that I couldn't wait for the first semester of college to go by so I could have Bella with me all the time as opposed to only being able to see each other during school breaks. I had a feeling that, no matter what life threw at us, we would always have each other.

**A/N: The song we used for this chapter was "If I Ain't Got You" by Alicia Keys. As sad as this makes us, this is where this journey ends. We just felt if we drug it out, we wouldn't be happy with it and it would turn out to be generic and predictable, which is something we never want to put out. Thank you guys so much for sticking with us through the long time between updates. Your support with all the alerts and reviews means so much to us. Thank you all, again, from the bottom of our hearts. We had so much fun writing this and we refer to this as our baby. Our baby is all grown up and ready to be completed. Make our days and give us one final review for this story. We have another story, for those of you that are interested called "Calling All Angels." We started writing it a while back but stopped in order to finish writing this but that will now become our priority. Thank you all again.**

**Lots of love always!**


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